There are certain bonds and moments that only a father and son share. The first day a dad teaches his son to shave, a first beer they share together, or teaching him how to drive. But there's not much more of a universal connection between a father and a son then a trip down to the ballpark. I typically try not to put too much emotion or judgment into a story when I read it, because more often than not it can eat away at you. But for the first time in a long time, my emotions got the best of me when I read the story of the man who fell and died at a Texas Rangers game Thursday night.
When I first found out of the news, all I saw was a headline that read. "Fan Falls and Dies at Rangers Game." That news is obviously disappointing in itself, but when I read more and more about it, the more devastating the news felt. The fan was a father, and not only a father, but one who brought his six year old son to the game. When Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton fielded a foul ball, he nodded at the father, Shannon Stone, indicating that the next ball he got would go to him. So, when the opportunity came, Hamilton threw the ball to Stone. In an attempt to catch the ball Stone fell over the railing and fell nearly twenty feet to his death.
The extremely tough part to read was that his son was there to witness all of it. It hits home because I remember all the trips I took down to the ballpark or times I played catch with my dad. It's a feeling that I'm sure is greater for a father than it is for a son, and hopefully one I will have someday. But when a father takes his son to a game, he wants nothing more than to give his son a souvenir to remember it by.
When I was younger I went to a Cincinnati Cyclones game with my dad and my friend. During the game a hockey puck was shot into the stands and my dad caught it (or as my friend Erik still likes to remind me that he "stole it" from him...but he'll live) Anyway, he caught the puck and gave it to me and I remember I was the happiest kid on the planet. It's memories like this that make it tough to read or even think about Stone's six year old son Cooper and what he is feeling right now.
It reminded me to never take anything for granted and also reminded me of the great memories I have cherished with my dad. Hopefully reading this will serve as a reminder to tell your parents you love them. Don't do it because you feel forced to, or have to, do it because you truly feel it at the moment, and never take anything for granted.
My condolences go out to Cooper Stone and his family, as I can't imagine the sadness they must feel.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
The Painful Non-Truth
Cheating, scandals, lies and manipulation. No this isn't "The Jersey Shore," this is American politics.
Anthony Weiner is the latest of many politicians to join this reality show. Yes, showing lewd pictures is unbecoming for any political figure, but the thing that sticks out to me (no pun intended) is the unfaithfulness of our supposed leaders. Weiner has been married for almost a year before the "sexting" scandal began. Marriage is supposed to be the ultimate trust in one another, a bond that a husband and wife will always be faithful to each other. So as Americans, how can we put our faith in our political leaders, if they made the mistake of betraying the ultimate trust?
This has become a disturbing trend, with the most newsworthy being the President Clinton and Monica Lewinsky scandal. From there, you can add names like Spitzer, Craig, Schwarzenegger and now Weiner to that list. Trusting politicians has always been a problem for Americans. In a recent Gallop poll, less than half of the American public trust the men and women in our public office and only four percent trust them a great deal. In a free and open country, where we depend on our congressmen and women to make the right decisions, only four percent of its people trust them wholeheartedly.
Politicians are human like the rest of us, but when they take the oath of office they are representing the American people, right or wrong. Everyone is entitled to their privacy, but when you make mistakes as blatant as Weiner made, you are asking for criticism. Coming with being elected, all of our politicians lives are an open book.
Not only is it sad that we have people in Washington who think they are immune to this, but we may have come immune to this and take the news with a grain of salt. You turn on the news, or visit the Internet, and most of the headlines involve the words, "another political sex scandal." Most of us probably read that as, "How could they?" or "Another one?" or maybe even get a laugh out of it. I'm not going to lie; all of those questions and thoughts have come through my head. However, when you read between the headlines, you should start to think about it. No, we're not surprised by it, because we've become numb to it, which is wrong. It's one thing to read it in a pop culture magazine or see it on MTV, but it's another to see a political figure betray someone; which whether you like it or not, is the representation of our government today.
Anthony Weiner is the latest of many politicians to join this reality show. Yes, showing lewd pictures is unbecoming for any political figure, but the thing that sticks out to me (no pun intended) is the unfaithfulness of our supposed leaders. Weiner has been married for almost a year before the "sexting" scandal began. Marriage is supposed to be the ultimate trust in one another, a bond that a husband and wife will always be faithful to each other. So as Americans, how can we put our faith in our political leaders, if they made the mistake of betraying the ultimate trust?
This has become a disturbing trend, with the most newsworthy being the President Clinton and Monica Lewinsky scandal. From there, you can add names like Spitzer, Craig, Schwarzenegger and now Weiner to that list. Trusting politicians has always been a problem for Americans. In a recent Gallop poll, less than half of the American public trust the men and women in our public office and only four percent trust them a great deal. In a free and open country, where we depend on our congressmen and women to make the right decisions, only four percent of its people trust them wholeheartedly.
Politicians are human like the rest of us, but when they take the oath of office they are representing the American people, right or wrong. Everyone is entitled to their privacy, but when you make mistakes as blatant as Weiner made, you are asking for criticism. Coming with being elected, all of our politicians lives are an open book.
Not only is it sad that we have people in Washington who think they are immune to this, but we may have come immune to this and take the news with a grain of salt. You turn on the news, or visit the Internet, and most of the headlines involve the words, "another political sex scandal." Most of us probably read that as, "How could they?" or "Another one?" or maybe even get a laugh out of it. I'm not going to lie; all of those questions and thoughts have come through my head. However, when you read between the headlines, you should start to think about it. No, we're not surprised by it, because we've become numb to it, which is wrong. It's one thing to read it in a pop culture magazine or see it on MTV, but it's another to see a political figure betray someone; which whether you like it or not, is the representation of our government today.
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