As we left the underground subway station, huge electric signs glared. Throngs of people merged as in one motion. Dancing before me were more sounds, smells, lights, and people than I’d ever seen. My twelve-year-old frame trembled with excitement. Daddy looked at my wide eyes with a grin, “Don’t ever forget this sight.” New York City would forever be etched in my memory.
My dad loved baseball and I was his baseball buddy. We watched the kings of the diamond on television, the New York Yankees. My dad’s dream was to see them play, not just on TV, but in the flesh. If he couldn’t be out there with the “Bronx Bombers,” the next best thing was to be in attendance at Yankee Stadium. Daddy was a switch hitter for a city league in our hometown. He could slide just like his pin-striped heroes. Clouds of dust, gravel, and the scrape of cleats joined him at home plate. Even if the ump bawled, “YER OUT”, it was a glorious sight to behold.
Daddy was a salesman with quips and quotes for everyone he met. Each year his employer sponsored a contest that resulted in a trip to the city of the winner’s choice. Three more times my dad won; four times he chose the “Yanks” hometown. He checked their schedule carefully to coordinate his trip with tickets to see his favorite team at home. Daddy’s trip announcements always incited a riot of excitement within our family.
Leaving my mom and sister to explore Fifth Avenue, Daddy and I scrambled for a subway to Yankee Stadium. What an adventure for a little girl from North Carolina!
Author: “Baseball’s Bond”-Ann L. Coogler
Excerpt from: Chocolate for a Teen’s Dreams- Collector: Kay Allenbaugh
Publisher:Simon and Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.
Trade paperback: ISBN: 0-743-23703-X
Price: $12.00
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