number one.

there is something about a kid that is happy all the time. a kid who really enjoys life and all of its ups and downs. bw is a kid like that. he takes the good with the bad and makes it all seem like cake. take baseball. he's the smallest and the youngest kid on the team. most of the kids are eight, turning nine. and one of them weighs 105 lbs and wears a nine in a mens' shoe. and yet, the boys are drawn to bw. he doesn't always catch the ball or get the biggest hit. he doesn't always know when it's his turn to bat or where he's playing in the field. but he always runs to wherever he's going (always has) and always has a smile on his lips. at his game last week, he caught a pop up square in the nose. he said he lost it in the sun. he dropped pretty quick and i stood back to see how he would react. he laid on the ground for a minute and his whole team took a knee around him. his coach, the one who tossed up the skyball, knelt at his side and rubbed his shoulder. as i walked over to him i heard the boys talking to him, offering words of comfort and encouragement. i called his name before i got to him. here's how the exchange went: "hey, becks?" he yelled back, "what, mom?" i told him to hop up and get to the dugout for a drink. he was crying and replied in a tearful voice, "alright, mom! i'm getting up, but i think i'm bleeding." by the time i got to him he was on his feet and heading for the bench. he ran to his bag and was sitting down getting a drink when i sat down beside him to check his nose. it was bloody and dripping from one nostril. he wiped at it with the back of his hand, smearing it across his face. he had a red mark on the bridge of his nose and dirt streaked down his cheeks. i said, "are you good to go now?" he put his drink in my hand, pulled down the bill of his cap, and took off at a dead run back to the field. he high fived a few kids on the way out. and turned to wave before he got in line. the smile once again etched on his face. what a kid. he went two for two, with two singles, and ran out a throw to second. he caught one inning. he looks miniature in his gear, crouched behind the plate. mw told him not to move but to just try to knock down the ball with his body. which he does. he keeps his chin tucked and his glove up and takes whatever comes his way. his team won. and he happily declared that the snack was not his favorite, that he didn't think oreos and water went together very well. no argument here. on any of it.