by Helen R Broom
with thanks to Sean Doolittle, Reliever, Washington Nationals
It is the boy sleeping with his bat on the night of game 7 of the series
The boombox playing Dirty Water on the train all the way from Braintree to Fenway
The unexpected hug from a stranger when a run brings them all home.
It is the old woman, bent over her program, faithfully noting every hit, run, and error
The drunks spilling lukewarm Bud on the back of your sneakers, apologizing with the next round
The taste of yellow mustard and red ketchup, onions and relish heaped on a hot dog.
It is the joy, sitting on the lawn, the cheap seats on a summer evening
Watching the minor leagues, the home team, the mascot dancing on the dugout roof
Children allowed to run the bases at the end of the game, their eyes full of hope.
HELEN R BROOM (nee Helen R Peterson), has been published in over 100 online and print journals, nationally and internationally. She was the poetry editor of the small press print journal Chopper and the online journal The Waterhouse Review. Her first full-length book of poetry, Melons and Memory, was published by Little Red Tree Press. She is also the host and co-producer of the Poetry in the Bar Podcast and Open Mic series. Broom lives in Michigan with her husband, children, dog, and four cats.