7th Inning Stretch

I love baseball. Every single bit of it. From the ice-cold beer and over-priced peanuts, to a perfectly-executed squeeze play and come-from-behind win. It absolutely turns me on. And, as I have mentioned before, I see nearly every aspect of the game as a great analogy for life.
Saturday's sadness had steeped into Sunday for me. And then into Monday. Queen of resilience that I am, I'm always more mad at myself for letting anything get the best of me. Last night, I went to bed in a funk and just laid there (the curse of being a deep thinker is being a crappy sleeper) I just knew I had to get a handle on this.
At 3:15am I had my "baseball analogy" revelation! I sat up and said, Julie Hibbard! This was just one bad at bat. You swung too early! You have to learn to slow down and be a little more patient. Don’t worry, you’ll be up again very soon. (By the way, yes, I always call myself Julie Hibbard when I am talking to myself.)
That's all I needed. I went back to sleep and didn't wake up til 6:30 this morning! (That's like NOON to me.)
Truth is, I've spent most of my life 'down by a couple of runs', always hoping to catch up. I've just recently felt like I might be in a position to tie it up. (Which means, a brand new ballgame.) And at this point, I know exactly who I am. I know the rules, I've honed the skills and I am ready to play. Of course, I also know that it's not just up to me. There are always going to be other players in the game and they'll have their at bats too. And maybe strike out. We'll need to encourage one another to find the position and stance that works best for each of us.
There will--no doubt--be errors (which someone will keep track of) and an occasional bad call and there's always that chance of someone getting hurt.
But all the while, the game keeps on going. And in the immortal words of Yogi Berra (or was it Lenny Kravitz?), “It ain't over 'til it’s over.”
Today, I'm seeing this portion of my life from the spectator's perspective at the “7th inning stretch." (In layman's terms, the "Take me out to the Ballgame" time.) It's time for a little break, time to stretch for a bit and adjust a few things after sitting for so long. Doesn't matter if we're winning or losing at this point, I need to stand up, take a look around and appreciate my surroundings...and sing.
Can you believe that some people leave at the 7th inning stretch?! Not me.
The game's not over. There are still 2 1/2 innings left to play after the stretch…and of course, if we're tied in the 9th...who knows how long it could go on.
What I realized this morning is...there's lots of game left to play.
So, here's the deal...though I feel like I’m a couple runs behind right now, I’m grabbing myself another beer and a bag of peanuts or two, and sitting back down to see how this all turns out.
Do you hear any fat lady singing?
Me neither.
That means it ain’t over.