Saturdays of Summer

Days go by....one by one....and suddenly a month has passed and then two or twelve. Where does the time go? It seems that it was only a very short while ago that I sat talking with my Dad and watching the baseball game. Daddy loved baseball as much as I do. It was he that taught me the game. He taught me all the ins and outs and even the *infield fly rule*! Growing up my brothers weren't interested in it and my Mom could care less. But every Saturday afternoon my Daddy and I would sit and watch the Game of the Week on TV. This was back in the dark ages before cable television, of course. So we only got to see one game each week. And each week there were different teams playing. The Dodgers were my favorites. But Daddy always pulled for the Cardinals! So it was especially fun when these teams played each other. And don't anyone interrupt us during the World Series! The house would have had to be on fire to get us away from the TV then! The Boys of Summer were a special breed. And those days were a special time. I always loved those Saturdays of Summer.

I remember when the Braves moved to Atlanta. My Daddy was so happy that he signed up for cable TV so he could watch every telecast. We now had a *local* team to pull for. It didn't matter that technically we were not local. It was close enough. So for many years The Atlanta Braves was *our team*--win or lose. And Daddy watched them play every day that they played for as long as he lived.

But today I looked at the calendar. Twenty years.....where has the time gone? It has been twenty years today since my Daddy watched his last baseball game. I sure do miss those Saturdays of Summer and you, Daddy!