Once upon a time there was this little boy. He loved his dad very much and they were crazy about each other. Then one day the father was killed in a tragic accident. It devastated the little boy, and as time went on his behavior became so bad that he was put in a section of school for kids with behavioral problems. He was angry and would show out, then cry almost uncontrollably. It just so happened that the school needed some temporary help for a couple of months so this old man came and was allowed to work there. He observed the kids and their behavior, and it reminded him of a time when he was angry at God because of the way his life had turned out. He hit some pretty hard bumps in the road but one thing had always been in his mind, he loved children, and baseball. Anyway, after working a couple of weeks there the old man looked at the playground equipment which consisted of an old basketball goal and some playground equipment. Well this old man had been watching this little boy and he knew there was something different, something special about him. So they made a deal one day. If the little boy would do his very best to control his temper then the old man agreed to bring a bat, a bucket of baseballs, bought him a glove and teach him the game. It took a little while but the old man and the boy became friends. The old man noticed that the boy had a natural talent, a gift for playing the game, and he spent every moment he could with this young man as well as the other kids. Pretty soon the old man had all of the kids hitting baseballs and catching them, and they were getting pretty good at it. On sunny days, cloudy days and even cold days they would hit baseballs, as long as it wasn’t raining. Well the old man’s temporary time was cut short and he no longer came to the school, but he constantly prayed for this boy. As summer came and went the old man thought about the boy often, and decided since that part of the school was up the hill he would go visit one day. As he walked in the door the first one to spot him was that little boy. He got on to the old man, which deserved it, because he was so busy trying to change his profession, because he loved kids so much that he decided to become a teacher. Well, the old man went to a different part of the school when summer was over, even though he was offered a job part time at the behavioral school. Well the old man turned it down and decided since he was changing his profession that he needed to be closer to that classroom. One day the old man had some more free time and went to check on his little friend. He seemed to be changing, getting better with behavior, and they talked baseball some more. The old man told the boy to keep working hard and he would try and help him get on the middle school team. A couple of months went by and the old man had to go up to another section of the school and low and behold there was that little boy. The first thing he did was shout out the old man’s name and the old man knew that voice. What happened next brought tears to the old man’s eyes. The little boy told him he had not forgot what he told him and he had been trying really hard, and he was going to make the baseball team. The old man just so happened to run into the coach and couldn’t help but ask him about the boy. First thing coach said was natural talent, agrat eye for the game and he was expecting him to do well. The old man went back to the boy, and with tears in his eyes told the boy that he was proud of him for listening and fighting the odds, and the little boy looked at him and smiled and asked when would they hit some more because he missed the old man. Well the old man missed him to and told him he just happened to be an umpire and he would see him soon, very soon on the ballfield, and in the meantime they would start hitting some more and practicing. As the old man left the school he had tears pooring down his cheeks. He thanked God that he had a chance to make a difference in a young person’s life yet was quite ashamed he had not pursued it further early. God told the old man he did exactly what he sent him to do. The old man held his head high thanking God for showing him the difference he had made in one child’s life. The old man is still working on his degree, and he still has his hardships, but just for a little while he carried a world of joy around and took a little time to forget about his struggles. For the first time the old man realized that he had truly made a difference, and it felt good. Nothing like it. He smiled and drove home.
Posted on: Fri, 16 Jan 2015 01:36:23 +0000
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015