Take Me Out To the Ball Game
When I
was a much younger bear growing up in
When
they told me how much they enjoyed seeing new things, I assumed they would not
really want to visit the same city more than once. I was surprised to discover this was not always
the case. Many of them would return to a
favourite city year after year. I
remember saying I thought this must mean they really didn’t like new
experiences after all, and they just wanted to see the same old comfortable things. Some of my friends were quite annoyed when I
said this. They said a return visit to a
great city could be just like visiting a completely new place.
At the
time, I simply could not imagine how this was possible, but now I think I’m
finally starting to see what they meant.
Usually when I visit a city, I only see a very small area. Visiting another part of the same city could
be like visiting a different city. Even
when you return to the same area, there could be a special festival that would
make it a completely different experience.
Or you might visit during a different season. I’m sure you can easily imagine that could
make a very big difference. As you can see,
I no longer think it is boring to make a second visit to a city. So when my traveling companion told me that
we were going back to
On my first
visit, Boston Common was one of my favourite sights. A large park in the middle of the city seemed
a very civilized thing. It was the kind
of thing a bear might do when planning the perfect city. Lots of flowers, grass, trees, water, and
quiet, make it the ideal place to relax and get away from the hustle and bustle
of the city. Of course, if it gets too
relaxing, then the excitement, hustle and bustle of the city is right there
just waiting for you. It is the perfect
combination for this bear. So Boston
Common was at the top of my list of places to see again on this trip.
My
first visit was in the fall, and now it was spring. The fall colours had been beautiful, but now the
leaves were coming out, and the trees were in flower. The spring weather was bringing people out
into the park, and I was there to watch them.
Even though there were many people in the park, it was still easy to
find a quiet place to be by myself. That
is what I love about Boston Common.
When I
was in the park last fall I saw a lake, but it was completely empty. Not this time! There were boats taking people for rides on
the lake. The best part was that the
boats weren’t powered by a noisy polluting engine. Each boat had a large swan at the back of the
boat to paddle. I thought it was very
nice of the swans to do that for the people. I shouldn’t have been surprised though. Most birds, and animals, are very generous.
On my
way back from the park I met another one of those special animals that know how
to be so still that most people don’t even realize they are alive. We had a lovely chat, and he gave me a long
ride, though we didn’t go all that far.
It brought back fond memories of my visit to the zoo in
It was
turning out to be a wonderful trip. I
was seeing the same things I had seen on my first visit, but they were all
different. My friends had been right all
along. Then, when I was least expecting
it, I had the chance to do something completely different.
Growing
up in
My
traveling companion is usually a very reasonable person, but sometimes he just
doesn’t want to take no for an answer. It
is one of the things that annoy me about him, but it is also one of the things
I like about him. It’s kind of strange the
way that can work, isn’t it?
He
wouldn’t take no for an answer when he first told me about
It was
the same this time. He told me that the
Boston Red Sox had not won a World Series for ages, until they finally won two
years ago. During all those years when
the Red Sox kept losing, their fans always stayed loyal and true. He told me they played in a place called
That
is how I found myself taking the “T” out to
I
enjoyed watching the baseball game much more than I had thought I would. It looked like it would be fun to play
baseball, and I started wondering if I could maybe teach it to my friends the
next time I was in Geneva. My only worry was that baseball would be very
difficult for someone as short as me.
One of my traveling companion’s friends said that being short could
actually be an advantage in baseball. It
might be harder to hit a home run with short arms, but it was also harder for
the pitcher to throw a strike. He told a
story about one famous baseball coach who hired a midget because the pitchers
could never strike him out. (Being a
bear, and a very short bear at that, I don’t think it is politically incorrect
for me to say “midget”, is it? Besides,
bears aren’t known for political correctness.)
I was quite excited about the advantage I would have if I played
baseball with my friends, until I remembered that all my friends are just as
short as I am. Darn!
Before
we arrived I was worried I would have trouble seeing the game with all those
tall people sitting in front of me.
Fortunately my traveling companion’s friends were kind enough to let me
sit on their shoulders. I had a perfect
view of the entire game.
The
Red Sox won the game 9 – 2. They even
hit a home run, just for me.
In the
end I was very happy I let them take me out to the ball game. Thank you very much Ernest! I had a fantastic
evening. When the game was over I was so
excited about the Red Sox that my traveling companion bought me a Red Sox
Baseball Jersey of my very own. I liked
it so much that I even slept in it.
The
next morning was a beautiful sunny day, and I sat on the balcony of our hotel
room on the 24th floor while my traveling companion had to attend another
of his boring meetings. I had a lovely
view of downtown