And it begins...

Last night we had our first example of discrimination. T ball of all places. But, no, it wasn't discrimination based on skin color, but of size and mental capacity. Let me explain.

During the game, both Caleb and Elliot did very well. This is the first real sports team either of them have ever been on. I'm really proud of them. They love the game, they practice like crazy at home with daddy, they have good sportsmanship. So, Caleb hits really well both times up to bat. Unfortunately, the first time, a child caught it with his shin. The second time, the coach told Caleb to hit up in the air. This is a skill I'm not sure I could do on command, but he did and hit it over everyone's head out to the outfield.

After the game, Coach Takata came up to me and told me of a conversation she had with a few of the parents. She said she over heard them saying that Caleb should not be on this team. He's to old. (Which he's not, he's between 4-6 just like the rules state. There are children older than him on teams).

Coach told the parents his age, but they continued. He's too smart to be in this age range. Apparently the dad had overheard a conversation between his son and Caleb. For whatever reason, Caleb said I can count to 1000. The boy said, well, I can count to 10 times 100! Caleb replied, ummm... that is 1000. The dad said wow. this kid really gets it.

Dear coach Takata concluded her story by saying "it's okay to be smart and it's okay to be good at t-ball and play on this team. We don't have to have a field full of dumb, unskilled players (like those parents seem to think). I'm glad Caleb is on our team."