If you Give a Girl a Softball….
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If you give a girl a softball, she will want a bat to go with it.
You’ll buy her the best bat you can find, and then she will probably want a bucket of balls and a glove and some cleats too. (and maybe a bow)
When she realizes she cannot carry all these things with her own two hands, she will want a batbag – in her favorite colors of course.
Then, she will probably spend hours begging you to go out in the yard to play with her bat, glove and balls, even though you may want to sit on the couch and watch college football. She will insist. And her insistence will win.
When you go out in the yard to hit and throw and pitch and catch, she will not want to go back in the house for dinner and she will swear tht even at dusk there is enough light to continue playing.
Next, the backyard will get to small, and she will want to see how far she can hit a ball with her new bat wearing her new jersey, and she will want you to drive her to the softball field.
Once she gets to the softball field, she will get all dirty And she will be happy. She will probably smile, giggle and laugh.
Once she’s all dirty, and enjoys the way dirt feels underneath her fingernails and in her hair, she will probably want to learn how to slide. In the rain, on a muddy field. During your favorite colleges football game.
And when slides in the rain, on a muddy field, and swings her bat and sees how far she can hit the ball, and finally learns how to catch – she will want friends to play this new game with.
Then you will get the girl a jersey…. (May we suggest jerseys from Two Five Apparel – they are the BEST)
And when a girl gets a jersey, she will want pants and socks and a belt to go with it. And a TEAM…..
And then life as you know it will end.
There will be no more lazy weekends watching college football. You will see more sunrises than you ever thought possible. Every spare minute of your time will spent hauling buckets and bags and stinky cleats and giggling girls all over the place to play softball.
You will get excited about new bows and new Softball is for Girls t-shirts. 🙂
Your backyard will be transformed from a neatly mowed place to hang out on the weekends to an overgrown week speckled faux practice field complete with a bow-net. And your house may be a mess. And your car may be dirty. All because you gave a girl a softball.
Your weekends will be spent grueling it out on a fold up chair. And her weekends will be spent gaining confidence and friends, and learning new skills and having fun and getting dirty. So dirty in fact that you will have to learn how to do laundry in a whole new way, like maybe at a carwash using the pressure washer.
Her smile will grow bigger and bigger. And each year she plays with that softball, she will get better and better.And her love for the game, and confidence in herself will grow right along with her jersey size.
Then, She might try to be a pitcher or a catcher or outfielder or infielder. Because softball teaches her she can be anything she wants.
And you will be there the day she hits her first home run, or makes her first double play.And she will make you proud. So proud that you will get her ice cream, and her coach will give her a game ball.
And right before your eyes, your little girl will be transformed into a softball playing beast, who set aside a Barbie doll one day long ago simply because you gave her a softball, and a bat, and glove and a batbag and jersey to go with it.
When you give a girl a softball, you give her more than just a ball. You give her a sport, and a talent, and hope, and dreams, and friends, a new family, a place to learn about life, room to grow as a person where she can push her limits, and bravery, and courage and LIFE, and memories. And she will have ALL of these things, simply because you gave a girl a softball and a jersey!
Then one day, many years from today….she will be in her room and a softball will roll out from an old dusty batbag underneath her bed. And she will pick it up and realize instantly that when you gave that girl a softball, you also gave her a childhood that she would never forget. And then she will hug you, and your eyes may leak – because you realize that everything YOU gave up along the way…..was worth it!
All because you gave a girl a softball……..
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I gave a 7 year old Shelby a softball and I sat under the umbrella in the rain waiting for the sun to come up just so the snack hut would open with coffee. I gave up nice floor mats for the industrial mud holders, invested in many garage sale blankets big enough to hide the modest girl that had to strip & change before she could get in the car. My road trips from Portland to Nationals in Hemet California, tournaments from Medford, Grants Pass or Park City UT not to mention all the local games were truly priceless. We made great friends and had so many fun times. Now this little girl has graduated from College and will be getting married soon. Her softball bag is still in the garage with the expensive bat and glove probably an old t-shirt and some old sunflower seeds but after 11 years of watching her play ball I just don’t want to go in the garage and not see that bag. Best memories ever!!!
I am a grandma who coaches 8U softball and this year I have 16 girls on one team! My grand daughter and my great niece are part of my team and this is our 4th year together. “If you give a girl a softball… ” speaks volumes since I had the honor of coaching both of my girls and now my grand daughter. We reinforce teamwork, manners, kindness, dedication, responsibility, and hard work! Thank you for making me smile!!!
We did all of this for my daughter and now we are all doing it for my granddaughter. I went through withdraw between the two. Fastpitch softball is great and more fun to watch than any baseball game.
[…] Very good read […]
This was awesome! You should make a poster of this!
I gave my 3 daughters softballs. Life was as you stated, but got even better along the way.
You see, softball fever infected me as well. At first, I helped the coaches. Then I became an assistant coach. I took all the courses I could. We purchased all of the teaching videos we could. I joined organizations, went to clinics and conventions. Then I became head coach. My daughters, wife and I became travel ball junkies. We had the sincere pleasure of meeting Michelle Smith.
I noticed that support for girls in sports was much less than that for boys. I became outspoken. I ran for and was elected president of our communities Junior Olympic Softball Organization. We held clinics and fundraisers. We recruited for our travel teams. It was an absolute blast.
My daughters were all blessed with talent and BIG softball hearts. There were no such words as can’t and won’t.
Colleges showed interest. We once again became actively involved in fundraising for the teams. Thank the Good Lord above for Title 9. We had to ram it down one of the schools throat, but managed to do so successfully. While most improvements occurred after she graduated, she became very passionate about the legislation and has used it to benefit the Academy where she teaches and coaches.
Each of my daughters have their own daughters who have been given the ball and glove. Our lives continue to be blessed as the cycle of a “girl with a ball” continues.
Love this
We gave our daughter a glove,wiffle ball and bat at age 3. Now at age 18 she will go to college and play D1 softball. l’m so proud and so thankful I could be part of making a girls dream come true. The article brings back all those memories and sacrifices…..it was so worth it!
Omg I
How special that you get to coach them!
That is so great! Thank you for your time to help shape these girls! I bet they just LOVE you.
I just love this story! I read it to my kids…so creative.
This article hit home. I only have one daughter and I’ve always loved the game and now she does as well. I’ve been coaching her for five years and I’ve enjoyed every minute!! Your article is just how life has been since I gave my girl a softball!!
As a girl that was given a softball, this hit home so hard. I appreciate what my parents did for me, but this was an amazing way to put it.
I’m in tears.
Some of the friends I had when I was playing 6 and under, 8 and under, 10 and under, 12 and under ball are STILL my friends, i’ve reconnected with some of facebook even after 10, 15, 20 years. Amazing.
This year, while it may not be a softball, we are giving my 3 year old a soccer ball. Her first organized sport. Will she stay with it? Who knows, we’re going to try all kinds of things – soccer, softball, basketball, lacrosse even! I want her to feel what i felt. I want her to know I will always sit in those chairs/bleachers, drive her to games, as one commenter put it cover her up so she can change out of her dirty gear before getting into my car, or I will be the one who hosts the “team sleepover” haha.
PS. I was the catcher, not because i was good at it, I was just the only one who didn’t mind getting down in the mud. 🙂
I played from the time I was 7. Now I coach a 6u softball team. I don’t have children of my own and was volunteered to coach but I wouldn’t change it for the world. These girls I have are my girls now. I’m so glad that I can teach them what I have learned through the years. Softball teaches them so much more than just sitting around. My parents and grandparents were always there to cheer me and my sisters on. My grandparents would even stay at the hotels with all the girls just to watch them play. First time I ever saw my papa cry was at a national tournament when my sister won. I can’t wait to see what these girls turn out to be!!!
I love this…This is what family and memories are made of..I am so very proud. Of my sons family that they can carry on traditions.This is what family is all about includingmoms and dads.we had little league for three sons and I am very proud to see the sportsmanship and togetherness continue and you meet some nice parents along the way and lasting friendships for kids and families
Thanks dad for giving me that softball. You taught me to throw and catch, intelligent baserunning, loved learning how to slide and I became really good at it. I didn’t feel I played hard enough if my uniform wasn’t covered in dirt and grass stains. The ball brought us closer through the years, it taught me teamwork, compassion, fairplay and sportsmanship. It help me pay for college through a scholarship. I learned to be a leader. I made lifetime friends and memories, all because you gave me that ball many, many years ago. Thank you.
I as a single mom gave my oldest daughter a softball she had been watching her older brother play baseball and she said she wanted to play ball .so I gave her a softball at the age of 5 she started and played for 13 years till she graduated high school she went to college but didn’t go out for the team , she was the for 10 years when she wasn’t pitching she was on first .my youngest daughter started going to softball games when she was 1 to watch her sister play when she reached the age 2 she got her softball at 5 she started playing and she played for 13 years also she also was the pitcher for 11 years and played 1 st base when wasn’t on the mound .this year is the first time in 23 years 3 children 1 boy 2 girls and hours and hours of watching them play and grow and learn the sport
May I PLEASE reprint this with your permission and give to my daughter on a Printed poster??
We used to read If You Give a Mouse a Cookie and If You Give a Pig a Pancake. I would REALLY like to print this on a wall poster for her!