How many times have you moved in your life? Well, up until I went to college at age 18, I would tell you, “none that I remember”. Now, as of Sunday…. I would tell you “44, I think?” 44 times, give or take, in the last 12 years that I have packed up an apartment, a barndo, a condo, a hotel room, a camper, or a house. 44ish times, in 5 different countries, that I have had to pick and choose what would fill up our suitcases and what would be left behind… and the ketchup never makes the cut. It sits in the fridge next to the mustard, franks red hot, and soy sauce until the very last minute when we have to toss it in the recycling bin. We give it away if we can… but honestly, if I had a dollar for every time I have had to throw out a half empty bottle of barbecue sauce… well then I would be about $44 richer!
Move #44 was from Taiwan to Mexico! A mid season move is never easy, but this was the hardest one yet (and not just because it was to a different continent with a 2 year old). Neither Tyler or myself particularly enjoyed how this one went down. The situation was new and uncomfortable. Tyler asked for his release. This isn’t all that common for baseball, unless there are extenuating circumstances. We will let the issues go unsaid… but as a whole, I am proud of him for standing up for himself and for ALWAYS putting Bryn and I first. We did enjoy our time in Taiwan overall and Tyler did really well there. He left the league at number 2 in the standings for the best ERA among qualified starters… but when it came down to it, we knew it was time to move on. We have always said that God puts us exactly where we need to be, at the exact time he needs us there, and in our hearts… we could feel that our time there had come to an end for this season. We didn’t take this decision lightly. There was a lot of discussion and a lot of praying. The process seemed fast but it had been building for awhile. To sum it all up: Tyler asked for his release on a Sunday. It was granted on Monday. We packed up our entire life and flew out on Wednesday. We had a beautiful 72 hours in Texas with family. It gave us just enough time to *kind of* adjust to the time change, squeeze as many necks as we could, love on all our animals, and then (exactly one week later) on Sunday morning we flew to Mexico. We aren’t quite settled here but so far we love it! There is still a lot of unknowns, but what we do know is that we are exactly where we need to be in this moment. And we are grateful for the continuous opportunities… we realize that baseball isn’t always that gracious.
So for anyone who feels like being a professional athlete is easy breezy… Think again, my friend. It’s exciting and a lot of fun, most of the time, but easy isn’t ever part of it. Let’s set aside the physical aspects and the toll it takes on ones body to perform every single day for years and years, and think about just the hard work that gets put in mentally and emotionally- on and off the field. This life is a never ending cycle of persistent work from a lot of people. 1. Obviously from the athlete themself. 2. But also from the agents that are working around the clock (ours literally had a 12 hour time difference) to make sure their guys are getting what they deserve. 3. And the families that never waver… through the good and bad. The people that are there to hug them after they threw a complete game or are there to hug them when things seem heavy, when the future is foggy, and life in general feels like a big ole poop shoot. These athletes deserve the notoriety that comes with being a professional. It is easy to think that they make a lot of money (this is actually a misconception for a ton of people…. But I’m not even gunna touch that one) for “just playing a game”. But it is SO MUCH more than that. A lot of them have other jobs/ investments that they tend to, they are doing charity work or putting in time on socials to spread awareness about things that truly matter, they have families that they go home to when they aren’t putting on a jersey and a smile for others. No one out there is solely what their job description consists of. And that is what being a professional athlete is, a job. Even though most fans are wonderful, not many people think about what is happening off the field. That these athletes have a life outside of throwing, catching, or hitting a baseball. There is nothing worse than sitting in the stands and listening to people talk trash about your husband, infront of his kid. (And no… they don’t have to be doing poorly for someone to have something bad to say…) Because to them, he is just an athlete who chose to do this for a living, so he “signed up for it”. Not that he is a human being who works really hard to be where he is. No one signs up for anything to be treated poorly as it is displayed for the world to see. Imagine having to go to work and handle your business, while riding a bicycle, with a camera in your face, and having people yell profanities at you. The perks that they get… they earn. You know what, I’ll get off my soapbox now, you get the point. To me, my husband hung the moon and he deserves the world, because he works his butt off for it. And no-one is going to convince me otherwise.
Good grief, if you made it this far, I applaud you. I did not plan on getting so defensive about our lifestyle… this one really took a wild turn that I didn’t expect, kind of like our living situation! I swear I came here to talk about travel, and packing, and throwing away our beloved ranch dressing with each move… so as a whole it feels a little more “all over the place” than I would have liked… but that matches my brain waves at this point. Funny how that worked out! Welcome to our world. All in all, we are exhausted, but we are happy. We are where we are supposed to be. God is good. Hard work pays off, even if it isn’t the way you expected. We are on to our next adventure. And I would rather waste the condiments… than the opportunities.
