We shared words like commitment, desire, heart and effort. I told him to be careful because this sport can get in your blood, and if it does, it's like a disease - hard to shake. His eyes and nodding head told me he was an eager pup. But back in school in Oregon, I warned, he was on his own. He said a buddy would catch him and he would work at it three times a week.
Buddies get tired of catching pitches in the dirt and chasing wild ones over their heads.
He would have to find a block wall, I said. I laid it on thick. Sitting at my desk, gazing out the window as the rain poured down yesterday, I thought back on that day with Brian. I was drawn into a nostalgic frame of mind. My how times have changed, I mused.