this is the article i submitted yesterday!! tomorrow is my interview, self-expression, fitness and they give the satellite awards. wish me luck! xoxo
First swing. Ball comes. I swing. It’s my first time holding a baseball bat. I don’t hit the ball. My whole body follows my bat and flails around in a full, low to the ground circle. I call it a “pirouette.” Second swing. I hit the ball and make it to first base! With help from the girls with understanding when to run (Before I get the hang of things, I run to second base on a foul ball), I score! I’m greeted by 25 girls high fiving me.
After the game is over, I see the Baybears mascot shaking his bootie on the grass, with the girls next to him. I get excited and decide to go dance with him. But by the time I get out there, he’s walked away, and with everyone’s eyes on me dancing, I’m not sure what to do. My ninth grade cheerleading instincts kick in, and I drop on the ground and do “the worm.” I hear people shouting, “Jackie!” and think they’re cheering for me, only to discover when I’m done that they’re scolding me because they had just told the girls to GET OFF THE GRASS!
On the way home from thirteen hours of rehearsal, laughter, and Southern hospitality, I share these stories with my host family. My roommate says, “That was a great moment. So many great moments happen with you.” With the jam-packed exciting activities that we do each day at AJM, I want to remember everything. But it’s these moments that I’ll relive for the rest of my life.
v Like 51 girls throwing the “first pitch” of a minor league baseball game.
v Autographing the baseball of an eager ten year-old girl.
v Catching a glimpse of my nine year-old sister in the stands smiling proudly, and realizing that she looks three years older than I remembered.
v Enjoying watching my friend radiate on stage as she puts her entire heart into her talent dance routine.
v Watching another friend – the one who felt like she wanted to cry the day before because she kept messing up during the self-expression routine – absolutely GLOW on stage because, having practiced determinedly, she nailed it today and knew it.
v Dancing with my friends to “Sweet Home Alabama” after the game. Remembering that this was the first song I heard here in Mobile as we walked down the stairs during the Opening Ceremony – and having this realization suddenly bring tears to my eyes.
v Being in the outfield asking my roommate why the play was over and exactly was going on. She – with her lip stick, sunglasses and sun shining in the background – says with a carefree shrug and smile, “I have no idea.”
v Last inning of the Baybears game, when the two teams are tied. Having my heart touched by seeing the support from a friend who lovingly helps a Junior Miss off the field when she rolls her ankle by sliding to first base. Having Kansas’s Junior Miss take her place as our runner and running three bases to make an exciting win. Rushing to a huddle to celebrate with my team – for the first time understanding why people get so excited about sports.
These are all moments of warmth. A warmth similar to the 90 degree weather that envelops you the minute you step out of the Junior Miss van into the baseball stadium, but different in that this is a warmth that I’ll always be able to feel when I close your eyes and think of my experience in Mobile. This warmth is a little thing we call the Spirit of Junior Miss.
