Whirlwind

I had every intention to write a very nice tribute post on Jackie Robinson on Monday, and I promise that I will finish it soon.  I had just started writing it, just one sentence in when I noticed my Twitter blow up.  I stopped my post to see what was going on for that many things to show up at once, and my heart sank.

We all know what happened on Monday in Boston.  It is horrible and heartbreaking.  Those images will forever be in my mind, and I’m sure all of yours.  Sadly, this hit a little too close to home for me.  I know somebody that was running in the marathon, and had a lot of friends that were there to see her run.  I have mentioned my “grandfather” or faux grandfather that has season tickets for the A’s that always gets me tickets.  Let me explain.  My neighbors, Frank and Sandra, are some of the nicest people I know.  They have amazing hearts and I’m lucky to have them in my life.  They are my neighbors that have adopted my family into theirs.  They joke that my dad is like their son, and I’m their granddaughter.  We spend some holidays with them and celebrate birthdays together.  Several years ago, Allen and Katherine Hern moved into town, and they quickly welcomed them to our “family”.  Those of you in the Bay Area have most likely heard about Aaron Hern who was injured in the blast on Monday.  While sitting here watching all of this unfold on Monday was hard enough, but then we got the phone call that Aaron got hit in the first blast.  We had no clue what happened or anything other than the fact that he had been injured.  An hour later, my “Aunt” told me that Aaron was in surgery, but they had no clue the full extent of his injuries. I have known this kid for years, I even baby-sat him and his sister a few years back, and the thought of him being injured in a bombing was shocking.  We’ve been flipping between news channels and texting my “grandmother” (Sandra) for any and all information we can get.  I haven’t been able to sleep the last few nights, crying and worrying about Aaron, and everybody else effected by this tragedy .

Today, Aaron underwent a second surgery on his leg that had been hit with shrapnel from the explosion.  The doctors had expected they would need to do skin grafts on the wound, but were happy to report today, they didn’t need to and were able to close the wound.  I got the text message just before the 8th inning while I was at the game today.  I should mention, my grandfather’s seats, he has had those seats for years, as have the people around him, so everybody knows each other there.  When we went to game four against Seattle during Opening week, Frank had told the guys that sit in front of him that he wouldn’t be at this game as he was going to Boston to see somebody run in the Boston Marathon.  When they got to the game today, they asked me about Frank and if he was OK, and what not.  When I told them what was happening, they were in shock and said to send their love.  We are all family at these moments.

Now, with all this going on, the only thing keeping me from going completely crazy is baseball.  It’s been a chance to escape for a few hours each night.  Still, it was hard to give it my full attention.  I wanted to email the A’s, but at that point, Aaron’s name had not been released to the public, so I didn’t say anything.  Aaron’s dad, Allen, is a big baseball fan, and I love talking ball with him.  Lucky for me, I’m an A’s fan.  Also lucky for me, the Astros aren’t very good.  Don’t get me wrong, they’re not horrible, but they’re not very good.  I enjoyed them beating up on the Angels and enjoyed them beating the Mariners.  I hope they continue to do well against the other teams in the division, but continue to struggle against the A’s.  Last week in Houston, the A’s swept the Astros, and today, they swept them in Oakland.  It was amazing.  The A’s dropped 6 runs in the 1st inning, knocking Astros starter Bud Norris out of the game after getting just two outs.  The A’s looked like they were on their way to another easy win, but as it always is in baseball, you have to fight for all 27 outs.  The Astros, down 7-1, fought their way back into the game, scoring 3 runs in the 7th and Rick Ankiel hit a home run to start the 9th inning.  Balfour struggled in the 9th, but managed to nail down the save after making it interesting.  By this time, my mind was all over the place, calling, texting, tweeting, facebooking the news about Aaron being OK while trying to catch glimpse of the game between it all.  I almost forgot!  Shane Peterson, filling in for Brandon Moss (he’s wife had a baby boy yesterday, so he’s home with his family right now) got his first career hit.  He looked good the last two days, and I can’t wait to see what he can do in the future.  Nice job rookie!

It feels like it should be later in the week with everything that has gone on, and it’s hard to believe it’s only Wednesday.  It’s amazing how time slows down when stuff like this happens.  Makes you cherish every moment, and live life to the fullest.  I’m looking forward to going to Tampa on Saturday to catch the A’s take on the Rays.  Wish I could get up to Boston, but my thoughts are with the Hern’s and everybody else.

Boston Strong.  I love you Boston!

From my trip to Fenway Park last year. My favorite ballpark of all time.