Wild Week

Wild Week 

Graduation for most is one of the most important and rememberable days of their lives! For me it was in the middle of one of the craziest weeks of my life! It all started a week earlier when my high school baseball team made the top twenty teams in the state, Thursday was our sweet sixteen game in which we won 8-5. Then we took our bus ride all the way home to our beloved city of Massillon to get ready for commencement practice on friday.

Friday brought allot of sunshine and loads of heat kicking off the turf at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium. I had a blast chit chatting with all my friends who weren’t on the team and of course flirting with a few of the ladies. That evening I went to eat with a few friends then home to get some sleep, after all we had a two hour bus ride in the morning and were about to face a left handed pitcher that was clocked throwing around ninety miles per hour! I was the lead off hitter and I hit left handed. I was freaking out when I seen him, he was six foot three, skinny, ugly, and mean looking!!  

Game time was at five thirty and for once the city was actually there to see us play! We always felt hurt, like we were not taken seriously. Football is king in this city, but we were looking to change that if not only for a week.  This game was broadcasted on both local television and state wide radio. We all got a little nervous when we seen the cameras and reporters. A young man sang the National Anthem and that was when I   started to feel the butterflies. Play Ball yelled the umpire, I lead off with a double down the line and it was all up hill from there!  In the bottom of the seventh we were tied and two of my teammates got on in front of me, I then hit a bloop single over the shortstops head to win the game, this was the weakest hit I had had all year, but by far the one I’ll never forget!!! Hero one minute, back on the bus the next, were going home to graduate in tomorrow afternoon!!

My day started like any other except today I was on the front page of the Massillon Independent as a hero and I was about to be a high school graduate. It was very weird in my house on the day of June 5th 1994 cause my dad was over. Earlier that year my parents went through a very nasty divorce. We took pictures, in which nobody was smiling. So here I am at graduation, it’s hot, real hot! It was said on the turf it was about fifteen degrees hotter than in the stands, great since its like eighty degrees outside. Graduation was fun, but I knew we had to leave early in the morning for mondays game, who would’ve thought us final four. After graduation we went out to eat at Chi Chi’s, I had my usual chicken chimichanga, and a beef taco!! After dinner I went to a friends house for about an hour then home to get some rest.

Monday the sixth of June was the day this town has been waiting for since we lost in the state semi final game against St. embarrassed in 1991 in football. Never in the history of the Massillon baseball program ever been in the top twenty let alone be in the final four. History every step of the way. I was and still am very proud to be apart of a team such as ours! We wore our orange jerseys with black pants, lots of guys had their socks pulled up. As for me I wore my pants saggy. We were warming up and were amazed at how many people in our town could, and did make the trip to Columbus on a Monday to watch us play. Toledo was well represented as well. There were around 7000 people in attendance. We were the home team so we took the field first. 

Toledo scored five runs off us in the first inning, which hasn’t been done on us in two seasons. We came right back, I lead off with a single to right field. Then the next two batters hit a double which I scored off of, and a solo home run. We were still down five to three but we were showing our heart. The score remained the same all the way till the seventh inning. Down by two in our last at bat i was just hoping to get a shot, I was forth to hit, and they were facing the bottom of our line up. Toledo’s pitcher must of gotten nervous he hit the first batter then walked the second on four straight pitches. So with two on and no outs I was on deck, and of course my dad was giving his advice from behind the fence. The batter before me popped out to third base, so it was my turn. I was hitting from the left side of the plate. His first pitch ran up and in nearly hitting me in the chin. It defiantly put me on my guard, after all I didn't wanna get hit or even worse hurt. He then threw one straight down the middle and i just watched it, “strike one” yelled the umpire. His next pitch was a little outside but I swung at it and drove it out of the ball park, “FOUL ball” yelled the umpire. You could almost hear the Massillon fans hearts leap out of their chests. Then his next pitch went by me as I stood there frozen, I knew it was a strike, I started to walk to the dugout before the umpire even called strike three, I was in disbelief, embarrassed, and my dad didn’t look to pleased either. I felt as if I let my team, city, and family down with the one lousy plate appearance. We ended up losing the game five to three, my coach gave us the I’m proud of you guys speech, but we knew we let him down. We drove home on a very quiet bus, lots of tears and frowns...but for me it was the end of the beginning of a great summer... 

A Soldier's Last Day

It was a warm and beautiful,sunny, California morning when Master Chief Petty Officer David O’Malley got a call that he had both been dreading and excited about. The call was from his Commander Chief Jon Parson’s telling him that his four tours had been enough, he was allowed to exit the Navy early. Dave wanted to leave because he and his wife were expecting their third daughter in as many years. He didn’t want to be like his father and never be there. Dave’s dad was a Navy Seal and he paid thee ultimate price, he lost his life in a P.O.W. camp in some unknown country. He also wanted out because he knows his mother can’t withstand another tour of duty. The news was great to hear, Dave would be done on June 5th, just a few days before his daughter was due. It was great until the call less than 24 hours later that would change everything.  Dave would have a choice to go on one more mission, and this one will be one his family will never forget.

The call was again from his Commander Chief Jon, but this time it wasn’t good news. He was calling to tell him his younger brother Dillon was missing in Iraq. Dillon was a Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps. Apparently he and a few of his platoon brothers had a special mission called operation Hilo, where they were to video spy on a camp that had some alleged suicide bombers hiding out. These communities throw big parties the night before an attack so they were sent to tape it. That is the last we heard from them and that was three days ago. His commander was giving him and his team special clearance to go find them and bring them home, then he’s done, last mission, and a very important one. They were in the air, on their way in a matter of hours. On the plane Dave had a number of bad thoughts running through his head, he knew these situations rarely end well. Thoughts of a retirement, a new born baby girl, a beautiful wife, and a mother home worried sick was all he could think about. He also thought about Matthew, Dillon’s son, and wondered if Dillon was staying calm or if he was freaking out. He started to shed a tear when the plane touched down on the enemy land.

They stepped off the plane only to hear a man yell, “O’Malley!, I would know that Irish face from anywhere.” It was Dillon’s Staff Sergeant Tom Spencer III. Since both Dave and Dillon were brothers they looked like twins, so he recognized him immediately. Dave was eager to be briefed on the location where his brother and the other Marines had gone missing. Dave was dressed in his Navy issued camo fatigues. While being briefed they received a video of Dillon and three Marines with hoods over their heads. In the video, the terrorist had machetes to their throats, this is them bragging and showing us that the Marines will be beheaded. Dave stepped out of the tent for a bit of air and a quick vomit, his nerves were racing, not so much for fear, but he didn’t wanna have to tell his mother that she had lost a son. Dillon’s son Matthew lost his mother when he was born and it would be terrible if his Dad died, even if it was for his country.

They had left directly after their briefing and a quick meal. They had turkey sandwiches with tomatoes and a piece of swiss cheese, Miracle Whip, potato chips and a coke. There were six seals in all and Dave was in charge. They were in a military hummer with loads and loads of fire power, but most know Navy Seals like to be more hands on. The first village they came to smelled of sex and lots of alcohol. There were whiskey bottles smashed everywhere, it was three a.m. and there wasn’t a soul in sight. They secretly broke in each hut and searched around finding no trace of an American presence ever being there. The next camp wasn’t for about forty miles, and in the desert that’s like two hundred. They searched four other camps with zero evidence of the Marines ever being in any of them. They had been searching for a week at this point and were starting to get frustrated. As for Dave, he knew that his wife was due any day and was getting more and more eager to find Dillon. 

The next morning they came to what looked like a small but abandoned village, They started looking around when they noticed it wasn’t abandoned, There were people hiding in huts and tents, they were terrified of our presence. The seals started pulling the villagers out one by one and questioning them. They were no help; except this one elderly woman who surprisingly spoke very good english. She was dressed in a dull colored dress and her face was covered; She smelled of curry food spices and old people smell. She spoke of a white horse that was coming for her. She translated to tell us, it meant she was dying and wasn’t afraid to speak like the rest of the villagers. She said she had seen my brother and the others, they were beaten and bloody, but alive. She was in charge of bringing them their one meal for the day, if they got one that is. They were stripped of their clothes and she also added that there were only three of them, which scared Dave because there’s supposed to be four Marines. The elderly lady added that one young man had pleaded for his life and to see his son again, only to be beheaded. Dave’s mind went there, “Dillon!” he thought. Dave was getting nervous and asked where they were, and the woman said she had no clue; she was blind folded every time she’s been there, but added she can hear screams at night.

That night Dave and his team spread themselves throughout the village, when all of a sudden Dave heard an American voice shout out “HELP US, GOD PLEASE HELP US.” It went on for about two minutes then stopped abruptly. What happened? Dave was thinking. They gathered and thought they knew where they were. They started running to this abandoned building that they had been in earlier that day, which was weird that they didn’t see anything, but no doubt the Marines were in there. They split into two teams and searched different floors of the seven story building. Dave and his team came to the fourth floor and encountered six men who smelled of must and sweat. They had blood on their clothes and hands, they were killed in a matter of minutes. The seals searched all the rooms when one seal yelled out “FOUND ONE!” in a sad voice.  It was an American marine beheaded, but not Dillon because he had a tattoo of O’Malley across his back. Just then they heard a cry out for help and began to run; they found the rest of them alive including Dillon. He looked as if he lost about 100lbs, and was very scared, but also never so happy to see his big brother. Dave was untying Dillon when he asked, “What are you doing here?” and Dave replied, “Saving you, AGAIN.”  He then carried him down the steps when he noticed Dillon fading in and out and he just kept saying “ STAY WITH ME YOU BASTARD! STAY WITH ME YOU BASTARD!” When all of a sudden Dave felt what he knew was a bullet hitting him in the back, knocking him to the ground and dropping his brother. Dave saw his wife, kids and mother flash in his eyes. That day was June 5th.

Three days later in a Naval hospital in San Diego, California his wife gave birth to a beautiful baby girl named Madison. Surrounding her was Dave’s daughters, mother, nephew and her parents. It was a very exciting day for Dave and Dillon who were in recovery two floors up. Laying in the hospital he realized he was very lucky to have a great family and a new found faith in God. The day in Iraq was his last day as a United States Naval Officer. 

Polo The Skunk

It was the wee hours in the morning on a Thursday, my favorite day of the week in the neighborhood where I am currently living in, because it’s trash day. I live in an upscale alotment where everything is fancy, even the garbage. These humans throw half pieces of steak and chicken away, I mean last week I even scored a lobster tail out of the old man’s can who’s always setting traps in his back yard. I always get a kick out of watching him struggle with the traps, I call him cardigan because he’s always wearing one, even in the blistering heat. I love my life though except for a few small details. For one I don’t have any friends, and two- I’m looking for a love. That is why I’m sharing my story with you, because today this skunk will prevail.

Like I said it was early and all the sounds of the night were still around. Being a skunk has it’s advantages of security, however I am afraid of my own shadow. Every hoot from an owl, or a rustle of a bush makes me freak out. They call me Polo, you know like the cologne, and it has to be one of the worst colognes on the market if it smells like me. I am black with two white stripes down my back, and a gross looking yellow tint as if I was a smoker on the white of my head. I have dark eyes and mean looking claws and teeth, but still I’m a baby when it comes to the dark. I was sneaking by Cardigan’s garage when I saw her. From where I was she looked like one of those skunks you see at the zoo, all showy and preppy, but man she was a looker. She must of smelled me coming though because just then she looked up as if to say, “this is my hood”. I made my way to Kennedy’s cans and had myself a real nice pizza dinner with banana peppers and pepperoni. As I was finishing up my meal I deceied to knock the can over as a nice tip to the family, when I heard her say, “have some respect”. That was the most beautiful thing I’d ever heard.

She was what I called an untouchable skunk, because there was no way I was ever going to be able to touch her. We met in the middle of Mr. Stokes’ driveway. This was so neat, normally everyone else won’t stand two yards from me and here we were nose to nose. She told me her name was Daisy and I laughed because I know she doesn’t smell like a flower. I told her my name and she laughed and I’m still not sure why.  We spent the whole night talking behind a Denny’s that was near the alotment. I told her how I had been on my own since my parents and brother were killed in the backyard massacre of 2007, yeah, I’m writing a book about it. She told me of her trivial woes and how she has been in and out of bad relationships. Every time she would speak I thought, “this has to be the one”. Then, an overweight woman that was leaving the restaurant put her left overs on the roof of her mini van and forgot about it. The container crashed to the ground so Daisy and I ran to get it, It was a cheesecake, which I now call our first meal.

We spent the whole night frolicking through garbage cans and even sprayed a dog that was a little passive aggressive if you ask me. Then we made our way back to my place where I was worried, not about the ordinary kiss goodnight, but I had to tell her about my battles with OCD. She had already noticed my neat pile of wrappers from all the local fast food joints and the way I have to touch and smell everything in my hole. She was a real forward skunk and she asked if I only had the one bed, and of course I did, after all I am a bachelor. I slept on the floor like a true gent would do, although it is late winter and I would love to be mating. But there was something different about Daisy. I tossed and turned all night, and my stomach was hurting. It felt as if my ribs were bruised. I must have eaten some bad food tonight, although I’ve always heard of this thing called love making your insides hurt. I mean she’s in the other room and I can’t stop thinking about her.

The next morning we slept in until about 9:30, when I decided to wake and go get us some breakfast from Cardigan’s can. He always eats wheat bagels and blueberry muffins. On my way Burt the cat stopped me and wanted all the juicy details. Burt was a black cat with a white spot under his chin and he was always looking for trouble. He must have seen me bring Daisy home. It was weird that he was talking to me, I would say hi to him everyday and normally he would just hiss at me. I always thought he was kind of a jerk, but I love killing him with kindness. I didn’t share anything except she needed a place to crash. As I grabbed some of the bagels and bottoms of the muffins, cause the old man only eats the tops, I mean who only eats the tops, anyways I was grabbing our breakfast when the thought of marriage and little skunks running a muck through the house popped in my mind. I’ve always dreamed of this day.

As I was walking back I remembered I didn’t tell Daisy where I was going, and I didn’t want her to worry. I rounded Ms. Maddy’s back porch when I heard what I know to be a trap slamming shut, and in it was Daisy. She let out a loud scream and I ran to her before the old man could get there. I did everything in my power to release her but couldn’t. I spent her last few minutes telling her how sorry I was, but thanked her for the chance to know what love was like. 

One Night in Boston

It was a cold and rainy October night in Boston when my dad decided to go stand in line for World Series tickets. Before going he stopped by my loft to see if I would like to go with him and my brother Jeremy. We were avid Red Sox fans who complained, win or loss. My Dad was wearing a pair of long underwear, jeans, and a winter coat. Jeremy was dressed for the weather as well. Myself not being a real fanatic of the cold fall nights in our fare city, I wore tons of layers.  Before going to Fenway, we stopped by a donut shop and got a thermos full of coffee and a dozen donuts. It was three A.M. on October 21, 1975, and I had a great feeling this will be a night no one will forget.

The ticket office didn’t open until 7:00 a.m., and I was bitching like you wouldn’t believe. The line was long and full of fans with the same hopes as my family to see the Sox win a Series game. My dad is one of the kindest men I’d ever been in contact with, he was generously asking people if they would like to sit in his lawn chair for a bit. I couldn’t blame them for not wanting to, it looked as if it were about to break any second. The whole time we were in line I had been noticing a woman about twenty or thirty people behind us; she was  beautiful in the way beauty use to mean something, classy, and way out of my league. She was wearing a ski cap and was bundled up like she was going skiing, so I couldn’t get a great look, but I sensed beauty. At this time it was about 9:30 and we were rounding the front of the stadium, We were getting very excited, then we heard a Fenway attendant yell “ SOLD OUT!!!”. I was crushed.  We were so close, but my attention turned immediately to the woman, and wouldn’t you know it she was gone. My feelings may have been wrong about this night I feared. 

We went back to my loft where we all showered and got ready to go to Cask ‘n Flagon Bar and Grill. It was a small Irish pub directly behind Fenway Park. My dad got us great corner seats at the bar, we ordered some food and of course some brews. I ordered the cheesesteak sandwich that had loads of cheese pouring out of it, and some really good seasoned fries. The time had come that we were waiting for all season, 4:01, game time. Luis Tiant fired a strike over the outside corner for the games first pitch; he shut the Reds down in order in the first inning. The Sox, on the other hand, scored three runs off a three run base clearing triple in the bottom of the frame. Then, in typical Boston fashion, we lost the lead and we lost it big, going in to the bottom of the eighth down 6-3. When the Sox started a rally again with two lead off singles, that’s when she appeared again. The woman was here, in this pub.

As the Sox had men on first and second I leaned to my dad who loves the Sox maybe more than my mother and said, “Save my seat”. He replied, “Why? Where are you going, the game is now, here in the eighth- no outs, it’s now or never.” I said, “ I have to go talk to my future wife,” and damn it he knew I meant it since I was leaving my seat for the first time all game. I felt somewhat bad because this night was supposed to be about my father and his boys taking in a series game together, but I had to take a shot. As I approached her table I noticed she was sitting with five other women, all in which were rooting on the Red Sox. Every step I took I felt like my cheesesteak was going to come back up. I noticed she was drinking wine so I asked her waitress to give me a glass of whatever she was drinking and a Pabst. While I was waiting I was noticing her shoulder length brown hair and her big, beautiful brown eyes. She was wearing a long sleeve shirt with a Sox jersey over it and a pair of jeans. Finally I got the drinks and just as I approached the table Bernie Carbo hits a three run home run to tie the game and the bar was going nuts! When I got my wits about myself again I’d noticed that she was standing directly beside me. “I bought you a glass of wine”, I said. “Thank you”, she replied. She and her friends came over and sat near us and Keri and I got to know each other a little better.

Keri was everything I’d been looking for in a woman and never been able to find, she was caring, thoughtful, smart, and beautiful. I was so interested in what she had to say I didn’t even realize we were going to extra innings. She told me about her life, I told her about mine. She chatted with my family and I talked with her friends. This was not at all the night I had in mind, it was better. Her friends were leaving and she really didn’t want to go, so I told them I would walk her home. Turned out she lived two blocks from my dad. It was getting late in the game at this point, on t.v. they were at commercial and it was going into the bottom of the twelfth inning. Due up was Carlton Fisk and he was in a huge hitting slump. He stepped in for the first pitch and it was a ball, up and in and nearly hitting him. Next pitch was one of the most historical hits ever. Fisk bombed it down the left field line hooking foul but the wind blew it back against the foul pole. Home run. Game over. Sox win! We drank until about 2 a.m., and then we were on our way home.

On our way we were holding hands and lagging behind my brother and dad, in my head the constant thought of that good night kiss and how awkward they can be. I was waiting for that perfect moment to ask her for phone number. My dad and brother were our first stop, Jeremy lived on Revere St. in a three decker condo that was a bit of a fixer upper, but very nice and affordable for the Beacon Hill area. We said our goodbyes and were off to my dad’s. He lived on Beacon Rd., they have lived in the same house since before they were married. It was a beautiful colonial with navy blue shutters and doors, the kind of home you think of when you think of America. We stood outside my parents home for a few minutes talking with my dad, and it felt like we were stalling. After about twenty minutes of chatting with my father we were on our way to Adams Rd., where Keri lived. On our walk I asked her for her number and  she gave it to me and made me promise that I would call her tonight and take her to dinner, and of course I was happy to promise that. We finally arrived at her apartment. It was a small one bedroom condo, but very clean looking. We stood on the stoop talking and laughing for a few minutes, I was nervously kicking the potted plant on her stoop when it happened. Holding each others hands we leaned in and kissed. It was gentle, very passionate, and over quickly.

As I was leaving I had finally realized that this night was the happiest I had been in a very long time and I had my family and the woman of my dreams to thank for it. When I turned the corner I was more confident than ever, after all I had just met a pretty young woman and the Sox were headed for a game 7! The rain had started again, of course it would since I was eight blocks away from my loft. I started to jog because it was really starting to come down and it was a cold rain. When I was running across my parents street I saw the headlights out of the corner of my eye and as I turned to avoid the inevitable, I was struck by the truck.

I remember saying that this was going to be a night that no one would forget, I just didn’t think it was going to end with me meeting the girl of my dreams only to never be able to talk to her again. I was pronounced dead on the scene.

A Final Trip

Hello, my name is Dan Stitt and I found out that I only have eight weeks to live. As I drive home I had loads of emotions running through my mind, most of all fear. My attention turns immediately to my daughter Madalynn; she is a beautiful four year old with blonde hair and bright blue eyes. I am very emotional because I will not be there for her sweet sixteen birthday party, her graduation, and to walk her down the isle like a father should. I made the decision to tell my family about everything, and how I planned to deal with it. My heart was in my stomach as I told my family and they were all  crying, When my dad and I came up with the idea to do what we have dreamed of since I was just a lad, travel the country to go see every Major League Baseball park!

So immediately we went into planning it. I got on the internet and printed out schedules for all the teams. My dad got ahold of a friend of the family with a R.V. and allowed us to borrow it. We then mapped out our trip, started in Cleveland, and headed west. It was  Madalynn, my dad, my brother, and I. This was really exciting because I got to do something I’d always dreamed of doing and I get to spend with some of the most important people in my world. So we left on a warm Thursday afternoon headed up route seventy seven to Progressive Field. After finding a place to park we caught some dinner, I had a colossal burger with tomato,mustard and ketchup some fries and a tall Sam Adams Summer Ale with a lemon. After dinner we watched the Tribe get beat by Oakland. This game was special to me in so many ways; one being this was Maddy’s first game ever, second being this is all for me. After the game we drove up to Detroit where we spent the night. The next morning we all wanted to visit the old Motown hitsville building. Later that night we caught a Tigers game and then back on the road. Chicago was our next stop and we were there for a few days, because one they have two teams in Chicago and two its a great site seeing city. 

The next day my daughter and I walked down to the  Sears Tower Sky deck where I was real emotional. The thoughts of no family vacations are starting to linger in my head and it’s getting hard to fight back the tears. We were walking back when we decided to stop and have a Stromboli in this great Italian Deli. My daughter was so cute wearing her little Boston Red Sox hat and a summer dress. That evening we watched the Cubs play under the lights at Wrigley, which is a rare thing, they usually play day games. I had a few beers and of course a hot dog. The highlight of this night was my dad getting an autograph with a huge mustard stain on his shorts. City to city we went and we were having so much fun, the stories that we had could last forever, and that’s just what i wanted for Maddy. 

We made it to sunny California, where as a kid I dreamed of surfing off the piers, and laying on the beaches. Our very first stop in Los Angeles was to eat at the famous Pinks Hot Dog stand where I ate a kraut dog with mustard, hard fries and a medium Coke. Then later that day we went to the beach where my daughter and I just laid in the cool waters of the Pacific. My brother and I also went and rented some surf boards and tried to surf. We failed miserably. That night we did not feel like going to a game so we stood outside Dodger stadium and took a family picture. As I was laying in my bunk that evening i was thinking about all we had done in a short period of time, my daughter can now say one day she swam in the Pacific Ocean, stood on the very windy San Francisco Bay bridge staring at Alcatraz. She saw more in a few weeks that I saw in my short life. The next few days were filled with tons of driving and one pretty cool stop in the Sin City, then off to Texas.

Texas brought scorching temperatures and one severe thunder storm that enabled us to see games in either stadiums in the Lone Star State. It’s funny, my whole life I’d always wanted to move out west and it took all this to make me realize my home is in the East.We hit all the city’s such as Tampa, Miami, Atlanta, and Philly and all of them were a blast. We pulled into New York and all it’s hustle and bustle of the city was around us, the bright lights, loud cars and annoying Yankee fans. This has to be the hardest place for a New Englander to come. So much hatred between the two teams, and it boils over into us, the fans. The Sox beat the Yanks that night in 10 innings thanks to a two run dinger by J.D. Drew to the right field seats! On the way out of the stadium we grabbed a hot dog, again, but this time at the most famous East coast hot dog joint, Gray Papaya Hot Dogs, I again went with the Kraut dog with mustard and onion, which is a better dog than Pinks I might add. As we are leaving the city that never sleeps Madalynn and I were looking out the window and she was asking me so many questions, and that time I couldn’t hold back the tears, knowing that the trip was only a few days from being over I stared to get bitter and scared. 

The R.V started to smell like dirty socks and garbage as we pulled into Bean town! We started this day off on a tour of the city they call the Freedom tour, they take you to all the historical sites such as the Old North Church, where they hung the lanterns, one if by land, two if by sea. We also got to take a tour through Paul Reveres house where I realized that I still had my sense of humor, when the guide said, “Any questions?”, and I replied, “When did Mr. Revere install the air conditioner?” She was not impressed. That night we had a great dinner at the Purple Shamrock, and by great I mean they have the best steak on the eastern sea board. After dinner we headed to Boston’s Cathedral other wise known as Fenway Park. It was a cool night, temperatures  in the lower sixties, so we dressed for such a night, hoodies and jeans. My daughter was  extremely tired, so she slept on my lap for most of the game, which might be the most memorable moment of this trip. Of any game we were spectators at this was the one I’d been waiting on, because the Sox are my favorite team since I was a young boy, and isn’t it funny that I’d would’ve rather be holding my angel than enjoying a cool Fenway night.The Sox lost that night, and it wasn’t pretty. They only got a few hits and didn’t manage a single run.

That night we were heading home, and on the drive I was extremely grateful to my Family for not allowing me to do this alone. As we pull into our hometown I realized i was never leaving again and that I learned a great lesson on this trip, and that is you can always count on family. This trip did it’s job, got my mind off death and brought me even closer to my family and especially my daughter.