Last Saturday, between baseball games at spartanburg methodist college, there was a ceremony on the field to dedicate the lights and honor the man, John Sparrow, who gave them as a gift to the school. Eddie and I stood up on the hill watching the entire ceremony. At the end the coach said he wanted to present him with a special gift. That gift was our son John's white jersey #30 framed. My first thought was ok I guess he must have been #30 before and they were retiring it and I suppose John will have to finish in a different number. No biggie. But then the coach explained "that the player who wears that number will be a man of integrity. That's a promise I make to you and your family. The best example of that right now is John Leopard who wears that number for us and he'll do a tremendous job representing you." Well you could've knocked Eddie and I over with a feather. We looked at each other to make sure we actually both heard that right. We were like "wow, where did that come from?" Not that it wasn't great to hear or that we didn't think that he was a man of integrity ourselves, but we had never heard a coach emphasize integrity quite like that and certainly never rewarded it. It was better than any home run he's ever hit, any ball he's fielded at first or any great pitching performance he ever had. And believe me those things have meant a lot at those times. Coach later said in an article explaining the gift, that he wanted to give him a jersey with significance. He said, "I was sitting there looking at #30 and said you know that's John Leopard's jersey and I'm sure John Sparrow was just like John Leopard at a young age. Good, solid, Christian kid, works hard, doesn't cause any problems, great to be around." Here's the deal. I'm not sharing this to brag on John. One point is that it's nice to have a coach that applauds integrity in a world that for the most part could care less especially in sports. The other point is that we've raised John and Stephen to know that baseball is a game. It's a fun game. You are blessed to play as long as you can. For many it ends after little league. For others it ends after high school. Percentage-wise a few are left to play in college and even fewer get to make a living at it. But it will end. And the bottom line is that baseball is not a stepping stone. It's a PLATFORM! It provides a platform in this sports crazy culture to make a difference. The question is, will you? Long after people remember your playing days, they will remember what kind of person you were and are. And that's what matters. That's what we've been whispering and at times screaming in their ears since they started playing at age 5. I know at the level that both of them play, the way they play is important especially to a coach who's got them on scholarship. As a mom, do I feel like they're sometimes overlooked? Yes! Do I believe at times they should be in the game when they're not? Yes! Do I believe they could get the job done if they were at bat or on the mound or on the base? Yes! But we also raised them to be a team player. We put them in team sports to learn to work with others and to cheer on others. Confession...they both have that down better than mom. In the sports world of whining about playing time and cutting corners when the coach isn't looking, I want mine to be pulling for the team. I want them going to the gym to work out or to the field to throw when the coach isn't looking and noones telling them to. I can tell you that at times like Saturday, I'm reminded of what really matters. And that is that they both be men of integrity because they'll never be too old for that to matter. And I hope the baseball platform works for them for years to come giving them opportunities to share Christ like no other platform can do. And I hope #30 makes his coach proud long after he's quit playing for him.
The articles can be found online at goupstate.com by Todd Shanesy at spartanburg herald.
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