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It's that time of year again... |
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Location: Blogs Brad's Blog |
 | | Posted by: Brad Miller | 3/17/2009 2:55 PM | Greetings,
You may be thinking, “Wow…Wednesday came quickly this week.” Not exactly. Tomorrow I have been summoned to report for jury duty in DeKalb County, and barring a last minute reprieve (man, you’d think I was the one on trial) I will be at the DeKalb County Courthouse tomorrow. So, I thought I’d get this out a little early.
This is a really special time of the year. Easter is not far off, the trees are starting to bud, the flowers are starting to make their presence known, and most importantly, before we know it BASEBALL will be back in town. (Okay, for those of you who haven’t guessed it, this is my annual baseball missive and after you read this, I promise you won’t hear much more about it this year – unless of course, the Detroit Tigers are good!)
In getting ready for last week’s sermon I was thinking of all the “sacred places” in my life and the ones that I highlighted in the sermon were home, the church sanctuary and our cottage in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. But as I thought about it, there definitely is one more place that holds an almost sacred place in my heart: Tiger Stadium in Detroit.
I remember the first time I ever walked into Tiger Stadium, which sat at Michigan and Trumbull (fondly known as “The Corner”). It all started with Mrs. Morrison, the cook at the summer camp my parents ran. She was a rabid Tigers fan. Every day in the summer, she had her radio tuned to Ernie Harwell and followed her Tigers religiously. I can still remember walking by her room in the lodge late at night and hearing a Tigers game from the west coast blaring.
One day she mentioned that she had never been to Tiger Stadium. My father said, “Well, when we all get back to Detroit, we’ll have to change that.”
Sure enough, that fall, we packed a picnic and picked up Mrs. Morrison and headed to a game. It was a night game and the Tigers played the New York Yankees. Mrs. Morrison was in her 70’s and I was 5. And together we would share our fist live major league game.
I remember my parents were carrying jackets and food, so Mrs. Morrison held tightly to my hand as we walked. The outside of the stadium was exciting, what with all the people selling hot dogs and pennants and year books and such. When we handed over our tickets and walked through the turnstiles, the noise got louder. As we walked up the walkway toward our seats, the lights began to shine out the tunnel entrance. As we emerged into the stadium proper I was met with one of the most stunning sights I have ever witnessed. The green of the grass and the power of the lights were as bright as anything I had ever seen. The deep forest green walls of the outfield and the seats contrasted with the brightness of the field. And then I saw the players in the most brilliant white uniforms imaginable.
At the top of the tunnel, Mrs. Morrison stopped and gazed intently at everything around her. She squeezed my hand and said, “It’s even better than Mr. Harwell describes it.” And on that day, a lifelong Tiger fan was born: me.
I returned to Tiger Stadium hundreds of times over the years. I have incredible memories of Mark Fidrych shutting out the Yankees and becoming a national sensation. I was there when the Tigers won the pennant in 1968. I saw Mickey Mantle hit his last home run ever. I saw Cecil Fielder become the first player in history to hit a homerun completely over the roof of the stadium in left field. I cheered Sparky Anderson as he kicked dirt on the shoes of any number of umpires just before they threw him out of a game. I saw so many heroes win and lose and try their hardest: Al Kaline, Billy Bruton, Rocky Colavito, Dick McAuliffe, Kirk Gibson, Mickey Lolich, Earl Wilson, Jack Morris, Lou Whittaker, Willie Horton, and well, I could go on and on.
What is it that makes it so special to me? Why is it that when I walked into Tiger Stadium it almost felt like I was going to church? I think it is because my memories are always connected to people that I love and that loved me, and together, no matter what else was going on, we could love the Tigers together. My older brother and I would take the bus on our corner and go straight to Tiger Stadium, and catch the same bus after the game. My parents always made a big deal out of packing a lunch and going to the ballpark. Friends, aunts and uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews: we all spent time together at “The Corner.” And so, when I think of Tiger Stadium, the baseball is only one small part of it. The biggest part of the attraction? All the people I spent time with there. And because of those people and the time we shared there, Tiger Stadium will always be one of my favorite places, if only in my mind.
Tiger Stadium may be gone, but when I walk into any ballpark and smell the hot dogs and hear the crack of the bat, all I have to do is close my eyes, and I am 5 years old again, holding Mrs. Morrison’s hand, as happy as any kid could be. And that’s a pretty good place to be. Anyone for a ball game?
For an updated prayer list and updated list of coming events, please go to www.brookhavenchristian.org
For your prayer list:
Darrell and Cynthia Freeman send their best wishes to all of their BCC family. Cynthia is making progress and hopes to be back regularly very soon.
Please keep the Christian Church in Georgia in your prayers. Difficult times have led to difficult decisions at the regional church, but as Ray Miles so eloquently states in this letter, we live in the midst of God’s promise and so seek to live out that promise in all we do.
Upcoming Events
Don’t forget: the deadline for your Debt Reduction Pledge is March 29th. If you can help out with a pledge for a monthly gift to Debt Reduction and/or a one time gift to keep our Debt Reduction reserve strong and help us move toward our goal of sanctuary renovation, please e-mail your pledge to giving@brookhavenchristian.org Thanks!
Holy Week will be here before we know it:
o April 5: Palm Sunday Praise on Peachtree in the fellowship hall at 11:00 a.m.
o April 9: Maundy Thursday Service in the sanctuary at 7:00 p.m.
o April 10: Good Friday Prayer Vigil Noon to 3:00 p.m. in the sanctuary.
o April 12: Easter Sunday:
§ 7:00 a.m. Sunrise Service at Oglethorpe Presbyterian Church
§ 8:30 a.m.- 9:30 a.m. – Congregational Fellowship Pot Luck Breakfast
§ 11:00 a.m. – Easter Worship Service
§ 12:15: p.m. – Annual Easter Egg Hunt
Faith in Film returns Saturday April 18th at 7:00 p.m. in the Haynie Theatre Room. Join us for “Fireproof”, a moving and inspirational story of love, commitment and Christian values.
I hope you can join us this Sunday as we celebrate the 4th Sunday of Lent. The sermon is titled “Sacred Living” and the scripture is John 3: 14-21 Have a great rest of the week!
Be peaceful,
Brad | | | Permalink | Trackback |
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