Summers in Philadelphia meant a lot of things: playing tag in the
driveway, catching lighting bugs, Mr. Softie driving up and down the
streets, and the sound of baseball in the background. The love of
baseball goes back at least four generations in our family. We have all
heard the stories of my great grandfathers listening to the Phillies or
the A's.
Danny loved baseball, especially the Phillies. He watched the games,
played with his friends, and played for a summer on the local little
league team. Once a year, we would attend a game at the Vet with our
parents. The seats were usually high in the stadium and we spent as much
time watching the fans as we watched the players. My cousins played a
lot of wiffleball in ocean city, with doggie dad yelling "John Kruk,
traded to the Florida Marlins!" Doggie Dad even drove the grand kids to
Baltimore for an Orioles game.
I don't always follow baseball, but I was able to follow the Phillies
through Dan's witty commentary
on Facebook! He was elated when they won
the World Series in 2008. Dan, Pat, and their friend Slag braved a huge
crowd to attend the World Series victory parade in Center City. They
were almost separated until Dan grabbed Pat by the collar and pulled him
onto a crowded subway car. Dan continued to go to games at every oppertunity, often attending with our parents, Pat, or his friend Slag.
 |
| Some of the Hellfish at a Game. |
Dan was looking forward to taking David to his first baseball game, but I
wanted to wait until David was old enough to sit and appreciate the
game, which I thought would be next summer. David wore the jersey that Dan bought him a few Christmases ago. We made
it through 3 innings before a rain delay forced us to go home (which
was probably enough time for David, anyway.)
 |
| Diz and Ben are both wearing gifts from Dan. |
Taking David to his first game last week was a bittersweet
experience, another reminder that things have changed. There are a lot
of things that I always assumed that Dan would do, that Dan would be
there for, or that Dan would enjoy. I know that I can do these things
for myself but there will always be the regret that he won't be there
for me in the same way. I got choked up when I saw a little boy wearing a Kruk jersey. But then I remembered that these memories, these experiences that are hard to explain because they are are so small... they are not going away.
I like to think that Dan IS still watching the Phillies in his own way. I can only imagine what his commentary would be like this season... or what he would have said to Ben for wearing an Eagles hat to the Phillies game!
