The Joy of Eavesdropping

A few nights ago, I sat in Globe Life Park watching the Texas Rangers  play ball. It had been several years since I’d attended a professional baseball game, and there were lots of things I enjoyed: the warm summer night, the sliver of moon that hung above the stadium lights,  being with family, eating a hot dog smothered in mustard, cheering with the crowd as Jurickson Profar did the splits to get a man out on first base.

But what I remember most about that night was a conversation I heard from three little boys sitting next to me. For the sake of understanding, I’ll call them Bobby, Chad and Joey. My thoughts are in italics. 🙂

This conversation took place following a foul ball that flew into the stadium between home and first base.

Bobby: Wow! That guy caught the ball! Chad, if you caught that ball, I’d take it away from you. It would be mine.

Chad: Huh? If you did that, I’d never forgive you. Do you understand me? I’d never forgive you.

Me: Gee, I wonder where he heard that from. Does a six-year old really have a concept of what “I’ll never forgive you” means?

Bobby: Well, I’d take it anyway, ’cause I want one of those balls.

Joey: Bobby. Bobby. How do you think you’d feel if Chad said that to you? Have you ever stopped to think about that? Sometimes you have to put yourself in someone’s place and think about how you’d feel if someone said that to you.

Me (smiling): OMG. Did a six-year old really say THAT? Bravo, little boy. And bravo to your parents, too.

As thousands of people filed out of the stadium that night, many were probably beaming about the 4-3 Rangers win over the Astros. Some might have been groaning about $10 beer(s) or too many hot dogs smothered in mustard. Some may have been dreading the traffic going home.

But as we approached our car, parked far, far away from the stadium, I was still thinking about the conversation of those three little boys. Amidst all of today’s crazy, cruel, ugly, thoughtless goings-on in the world, there are still people–even six-year old boys–who think about how their actions might affect another. Some, like Joey, even try to pass that on.

And that made me believe there’s still hope.