When I was little, my brother was always playing baseball. I would have to tag along since I was so young, and while my parents would watch the nine innings, I would find a playground or a sandbox, or anything at the park to keep me occupied when I couldn’t convince my mom to buy me some nachos at the snack bar.
Luckily, I was usually not alone in this. I could always count on there being at least one other younger sibling who had no interest in watching a baseball game. The thing I remember most about those nights spent at a baseball complex was how easy it was to make friends. I was very shy, but I had no problem walking up to almost anyone and asking if they wanted to play on the jungle gym.
I did, of course, have a very strict screening process before becoming friends on the playground. It went something like this. “Hi, what’s your name?” They respond. “Cool. How old are you?” We exchange numbers (age that is) and are ready to play. That is all there was to it.
I have often thought about this, sometimes longing for the simplicity of connecting with another person without any preconceived notions or judgments about who we are or where we came from. It is something I want to bring back to the forefront of my life. It is not always kosher to be so upfront with people you have just met, and that is a norm I do not understand but have and probably will continue to abide by. Hopefully we can all break down those walls.
My favorite musician, Natasha Bedingfield, has a song on her second CD entitled “Backyard” and it explains so well the thoughts I have put forth here. I was looking for a way to add it to the blog and found this clip from a live show where she explains thoughts similar to mine…how easy it was as kids and how we can carry that with us into our adult lives to make the world a better place. The quality is a little shaky, but I thought it best to hear her explanation to her own song from her. Take a look.
