I am writing this post in a hotel room in Amarillo. The TV is on and I am watching "Field of Dreams". Needless to say, I am writing despite the tears in my eyes. The last time I watched this movie was about this time of year, 2004, a few weeks after my father died. I cried almost as much tonight as I did then. Halfway through the movie, Ray (Kevin Costner) recalls his father asking him to "have a catch". Ray refused his father. Shortly after that Ray's father died. The last scene of the movie, Ray's father returns to the "field of dreams" where Ray asks his dad if he wanted to have a catch. Yes, that's when I lost it. I would give anything to play catch with my dad one more time. My dad was my baseball coach growing up. Playing catch with my dad was one of my favorite memories. I remember sitting at the front door with a baseball and two gloves, waiting for my dad to arrive home from work. I would escort him immediately to the backyard to play catch.

I still think of him today, while watching my grandson, Noah, play baseball, who my dad never met. Now, I play catch with him. I hope it means as much to Noah as it did to me.

Dad's please slow down. Don't be too busy to create some memories. Jump headfirst into those activities that bring your children joy. I raised three daughters. I wanted all three of them to be "jocks", so I could play ball with them. They all loved music and theater. Guess what? I have almost every song of every musical memorized today. Watching my children perform just made my heart happy, mainly because I could see the passion and joy in eyes while they sang.

I am sixty-two years old now. Last May, I had a heart attack on Noah's birthday that should have taken my life, but God...today, I don't take life for granted. Life is a gift. Every moment we enjoy with our children and grandchildren is a gift. How blessed are we to have opportunities to create memories that will live for eternity?