Friends founder George Fox said, “I saw also there was an ocean of darkness and death, but an infinite ocean of light and love which flowed over the ocean of darkness.”
I have experienced death and with it, darkness. My uncle Larry passed away at the start of my sophomore baseball season. I was fortunate to have worked hard enough to make the varsity baseball squad that year. The season would start with me coming out of the bullpen as essentially a “match-up lefty”. A match-up lefty is a left-handed pitcher called upon to get out tough left handed batters. I was happy to have any role on the team and do my part. My uncle suddenly and unexpectedly passed away just as the season was starting. Baseball suddenly became a diversion for me. Three or four hour practices were welcome time away from the real world of funeral arrangements and loss. Larry was the type of uncle that always gave me a hard time and was very competitive. He joked that there was no way I could strike him out. Once the games started, I thought of him often. I could look into the stands and see the pain on my father’s face as he sat there hoping the game would take him away from the loss of his brother. I felt an obligation to my family to provide some relief for their pain. I prayed that my left arm was strong enough to carry my family through this difficult time.…show more content… We had three tough games in four days. I really was not sure how my role would be impacted by the recent loss of my uncle. What I did know was that I was ready. This was a dark time for my family and I was searching for an ocean of light to lift them from the darkness. I pitched 11 innings at the end of the first week. My team was fortunate to have won all three games and I was the winning pitcher in all three. I had not given up a hit in 11 innings. With each strike out, I could sense my uncle Larry teasing and laughing and encouraging me to do
