As I’ve detailed in these pages before, I am a baseball fan. I don’t consider myself an expert on the sport by any means, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t get excited as opening day drew near, or that I didn’t squirrel away bits of trivia and minutia in the manner only a true fan is capable of.

I also consider myself a bit of a pragmatist, so I often find myself trying to cull life-lessons out of the games. I do this in part to justify long hours whiled away on the sofa watching, or even just half-watching, my favorite teams battle it out. Nevertheless, they are handy things to keep in mind when you find yourself pushing through an especially trying day. A few recent gems:

It’s just a game

There’s nothing I like better than seeing two players on opposing teams joking together between innings or even during the game. Sure they’re competitors, sure they both want to win. But in baseball, as in life, it’s always best to keep things in perspective. How much is a win in sports or anything else really worth if you have to be an insufferable toad to get it? Not much, I think.

There’s always tomorrow

It’s spring time, the flowers are blooming, the birds are singing…and my beloved Detroit Tigers are stinking up the joint. At last check, they were a dismal 3-11. So what could possibly be redeeming or life-affirming about this? Two years ago, right after a season in which they secured the all-time record for most losses in a season, they went to the World Series. It just goes to show that it’s usually not prudent to give up the ship just because everything is going terribly. It’s never too late to turn it around given the right combination of talent, effort and luck.

Give it heck. Fail. Repeat

I couldn’t guess how many people saw this, and I only know about it from a quick blurb on SportsCenter that ran over the weekend. To be honest, I can’t even recall what team this guy played on. But I saw a game recap that featured a player swinging so hard at a pitch that he actually fell down in the batter’s box. Just completely upended himself. The best part was that, instead of getting flustered, he got right back up and swung just as hard at the very next pitch…and he hit it out of the park.

Certainly something to keep in mind the next time you swing and miss.

Saying goodbye

Though I never had the good fortune to know her personally, I join many, many other Powhatan residents this week in mourning the loss of Mrs. Wanda Hagy. Mrs. Hagy was a long-time fixture in the County school system, and had served in a number of different capacities from instructional aid to School Board clerk.

More important than that, she had been a champion of the Schools’ mission and, according to those who knew her well, was always willing to do whatever she could to help others.

For those who didn’t know her, the legacy of Wanda Hagy’s generous spirit and willingness to put others first were evident in the way her friends have chosen to memorialize her. A scholarship in her name will now continue to help the students she had devoted her life to.

Talking to those who knew Mrs. Hagy on Monday, as they prepared to attend her memorial service at Powhatan Junior High School, one thing became very clear: her passing is an irreparable loss, not just to her family and friends, but to the County of Powhatan as well.