Have a ball!

Yesterday, a large, purple, rubber ball was in the front yard. It was wedged between the telephone pole and the hillside. By the time I checked again the ball was gone...I’m figuring the kids must have come to get it. Good.

Although it didn’t make the National Toy Hall of Fame until 2009, is there any better toy than a ball?

As a kid, if I had a ball to play with --- any ball --- all was well in my world.

If it was a “Superball” we would bounce it off the sidewalk to see if we could get it as high as the house.

The rubber balls in the big metal tubs at the store were perfect for kickball.

How great were the giant, red, rubber balls of elementary school gym class?

Tennis balls --- nothing better than opening that new can and getting that good bounce!

Any small rubber ball was built to enhance one’s fielding skills by throwing it up against the garage and catching it infinitum.

Growing up near fields and roads one quickly learned to make rules: “Any ball kicked that lands on the road is an automatic O.U.T.” If a ball went over the hillside and into the weeds one would yell, “Did you see where it went? Mark that spot so we can find it!”

Because I’m happy the ball found its way back home, here then a TOP 10:

10. Always put a found ball back into the yard from whence it came.

9. Always kick, not throw, back a wayward soccer ball.

8. Be the first person to buy a kid her or his first ball.

7. When asked to play catch....even on a Sunday morning after church...always say YES!

6. Be gracious to the kid who’s hit or throw breaks a window....doubly so if it’s your window.

5. Have at least one ball in your house.

4. If you are ever fortunate enough to get a baseball from a major league game put it in a place
of honor. Mine sits above my writing desk.

3. Make it a point to smell a baseball....sweet!

2. Know who the person is, or be that person, who has the needle and pump to fix when a ball
has gone flat.

1. Bouncing, shooting, throwing, catching, kicking a ball is great therapy!

Go outside and have a ball!

sj;