Because of my husband’s interest all things hockey and baseball, I have learned wayyy more about sports in the last eight months than in my entire life. I can now understand basic terminology like off side, penalty shot, shoot-out or bullpen, knuckle ball, innings. I don’t have to ask questions like, “How do they score a point?” (By shooting in the net/running around all the bases back to home plate) or “What happens if it goes into overtime?” (5 minutes more, next team that scores wins, otherwise it goes into a shoot-out).
Mmhmmmm.
On our honeymoon, Jordan read a best selling biography about the MLB player R.A. Dickey, Wherever I Wind Up. He couldn’t put it down. (And after all, I’d have to learn at some point that being blissfully married didn’t mean he would drop all of his hobbies to sit and stare at me 24/7. Hear it now, young brides-to-be.)
Jordan kept tell me I should read it, but to me it screamed BASEBALL=BORING.
So I did what any good wife would do, and read it. I played it on my iPod while landscaping during a summer heat wave. From the first chapter, I wanted to keep working so that I could keep listening. 
Dickey’s story is nothing short of compelling and so very human. His narration of traumatic childhood experiences and career failures is heartbreaking yet liberating for the reader. He bravely revealed his dark experiences to the light and that darkness was swallowed up. Something we should all do more often: share, confess, speak, in order that we might be freed, relieved, and at peace.
I thought this book would be boring, but I loved it. Now I feel more invested, more connected, more interested in baseball than I had before. And more so, Dickey’s story is unforgettable. A recommended read for all.
Listen to R.A.’s short personal story on I Am Second
photo credit: wbur; I Am Second
Olivia Jamie 