God's Gift to Write is in My DNA

By Marvin Ferguson

I thank God for the gift to write and be a published author. It's an exhilarating experience that I will never forget.

It would have been great if I were lucky enough to be a professional league baseball player, but it wasn't meant to be. Instead, my passions went into a different direction, and as a die hard Cub fan, I put the play-by-play action on the playing field and wrote three baseball stories for Junior High students to enjoy.

Like anything else worth achieving, it requires hard work. And little did I realize it then that my childhood would prepare me to write. Yes, God provides.

At twelve years of age I purchased some plastic baseball players off a cereal box. Like the Little Rascals I made a ball park out of scrap wood I found in the back of a grocery store and some green and some gray construction paper, barrowed a spinner from another game, kept score, and played baseball to my heart's content.

With a compass I drew a baseball diamond and made some dugouts up against a four-inch wall. The shape of each player intrigued me and I was able to be anybody I wanted to be—Ernie Banks, Pete Rose, Johnny Bench, Lou Brock, Stan Musial, and more. I gave the teams a name, created my own lineup, and even became a broadcaster in the TV booth. There wasn't anything I couldn't do, it was fun, and fueled my imagination to write latter in my adult life.

If we allow God to work in our lives, He will prepare a way. Amen! Thank you God for giving me an interest in baseball and a desire to write.

Baseball Inspiration

By Marvin Ferguson

 

The sun shined beneath a clear blue sky.  The temperature was in the eighties. Spring was in the air and along with it another baseball season.

 As a Clinical Technician at a local hospital my days were all routine. There was nothing unusual until one day recently I was congratulated by one of my peers for winning an employee survey raffle contest.

What? I asked. I was shocked because I never won anything in my whole life. Then, when I learned that I just won four tickets to a Cub game at Wrigley Field, I went bonkers.

And so with my wife and some friends we had a bird's eye view from the left field bleachers. We saw everything, and with popcorn, hot dogs, peanuts, and soda pop, we were in our second heaven.

Baseballs traveled swiftly on the infield grass. There were long throws from third base to first. Fly balls sailed deep into the outfield. And a fan scrambled for a home run that landed near my seat.

Sitting with thirty-five thousand baseball fans watching all the play-by-play action was fun and got my juices flowing to write another book. Yes, baseball was in my DNA. Talk to me about baseball and it wouldn't be long before you saw me with a pen in my hand filling all the pages with my favorite subject.

 

A Grateful Pair Of Eyes

by Marvin Ferguson

Among all the components of the human body I think the eyes are most intriguing. And without them where would we be?

The coach always said to the hitter to keep his eye on the ball. Don't worry about the color of his eyes or hair. And so he grimaced staring at a ball hidden behind the pitcher's knee. Then, suddenly, like a bolt of lightening from out of nowhere it crossed the plate.

Traveling on the infield grass, a pair of eyes watched the ball as the shortstop scooped it up into his glove. Another pair of eyes watched while diving for a ball that escaped into left field.

In the movie "Trouble With The Curve" Clint Eastwood, hitting coach, started having problems with his vision. When baseball fans and players watched in awe at a called strike, even Clint Eastwood insisted that it was a strike. Yet his attorney daughter was amazed at how he could see it. His reply, "I heard it." And the viewers laughed.

Sitting in the waiting room I pondered the thought about my wife's cataract surgery recently. My mind was racing. How fortunate we are for God to give us the gift of sight.

But God always provides. The late Ray Charles, blind from his childhood, was a gifted piano player and singer. Ronnie Milsap, blind from birth, became a popular country singer.

On another note the Bible says to live more by faith and less by sight. From a different perspective our walk with God depends more on trust and faith than what we see or intellectualize.

And so I live with a grateful heart for the gift to see, and even more so that our faith doesn't depend on our sight.

Baseball Is In His DNA

By
Marvin Ferguson

It's in everybody's DNA. People have God given spiritual gifts in the form of skills and talents that are used throughout the church and marketplace.

Michelangelo painted the ceiling in the Sistine Chapel. John Grisham is a successful thriller mystery author. Michelle Obama is a former lawyer and now wife of president Barack Obama, and Stan Musial is a famous baseball player. And they say, "Variety is the Spice of Life."

January 26, 2013. I drove around Busch Stadium in St. Louis with lots of pleasant thoughts racing through my mind. Recently, at 93, Stan Musial passed away. Today, baseball fans throughout the world are paying tribute to this great St. Louis Cardinal hero.

He was nicknamed "Stan The Man" and played for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1946-1963. He was one of the greatest hitters of all times with 475 career home runs, and tied the All Star selection lists with Willie Mays. A 3x National League most valuable player he was inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame in 1969. Surely, baseball was in his DNA and his presence in baseball events will be missed.

As I sit back in my easy chair and reflect about my own life, I hope I am putting together the right characteristics of my DNA to glorify God in everything I do and say.

1920-2013

Meet Me in St. Louis

by Marvin Ferguson

 Our daughter's boyfriend, Tim, held season tickets to St. Louis Cardinal baseball games. And so, Judy and I jumped to the invitation for an exciting weekend.

It was 4:30 a.m. when I put our suitcase in the trunk of our car. Then, in the dark, we traveled through the back roads toward the main highway.

Already traffic was moderate. People were off to visit friends, family, or perhaps going to work or joining us to the airport.

The parking lot at General Mitchell Airport in Milwaukee was quiet. A few cars parked in designated spots while people rushed toward the terminal.

Inside the airport apprehensive passengers scanned the arrival and departure schedule. Long lines of people anticipated checking in along with the necessary body search. There was so much to do at the airport.

Down a long corridor Judy and I searched for Gate 15. When the ticket agent mentioned our name I knew we had arrived. "Airtran flight number... is now boarding." How were we supposed to know all the other passengers were already on board?

Twenty-five minutes ahead of schedule and we were airborne.

As some passengers stared out the window at the vast landscape, others either slept or read a magazine. Meanwhile, the flight attendant stayed busy serving us beverages along with a snack.

One hour and fifteen minutes later we were in Lambert International Airport with other people browsing through a gift shop or searching for a luggage carousel.

Finally, with a small overnight bag, two very special people greeted us. After a smile, a hug, and the usual chatter, we traveled toward The Renaissance Hotel downtown. Later that day, it will be an exciting baseball game at Busch stadium.

It was a pleasure to visit our daughter and her friend. But what I liked best was watching all the people. And God loves them all.

The Hot Corner

By Marvin Ferguson

The veteran baseball player has been around for a long time. He started with the Boston Braves (1946). Before ending his career as a player with the Milwaukee Braves (1960), he entertained New York Giant, St. Louis Cardinal, and Philadelphia Philly fans.

 He was a successful manager, winning a pennant with the Giants (1962). More managing opportunities followed with the Kansas City Athletics, Cleveland Indians, Oakland Athletics, and San Diego Padres.

 During his baseball career he received many accolades—3x All Star selection, 2x World Series Champion, 1948 Rookie of the Year, and 1955 Lou Gehrig Memorial Award.

But I remember Al Dark best when he played third base with the Chicago Cubs. He fielded fast moving ground balls, caught sharp hit line drives, and made the long throw across the diamond look easy.

 He described the third base position as "The Hot Corner." Surely, it was a place where it was necessary to stay alert.

 Life is like living on "The Hot Corner." It's a do or die situation—a relationship with God. Either we're in the loop or not. There is no neutral middle of the road position. By doing nothing with our own life doesn't make our relationship with God right.

 Al Dark knew the importance about playing third base. Playing good defense helped win ball games. A poor performance and the team suffered losses.

The Baseball

By Marvin Ferguson

It's a good thing I'm not afraid of speed or height. At times I travel very fast

and other times very slow. Sometimes I go high into the air before coming

down. I'm use to getting knocked around just like people. My face is round. I

don't have any eyes, but sometimes people wish I did. Nor do I have a nose

or mouth. Not even a hairline to put some character on my face. All I have

are stitches arranged like an appendix scar. Folks, I'm different. I don't have

any feelings. You never see me smile or cry. I am a baseball.

One day I found myself comfortably inside the web of a baseball glove

before I felt a pair of hands moving on my face, flipping me around until
some fingers rested on my stitches. Then the glove moved, but I couldn't tell
where I was going.

The hand on my face didn't move either until I suddenly felt a cool breeze.
As I was lifted out of that cozy spot inside a glove I traveled over a man's
shoulder toward his back so fast it took me by surprise. Then, as he extended
his arm to its maximum position, suddenly I felt a jerk that brought me back
over that same shoulder leaving his fingers, traveling on my own at ninety
miles per hour.

As I sailed through the air, the breeze increased whipping in my face. All
around me everything looked blurred. In front of me, all I could see was a
faint patch of dark brown that looked like the glove I just left. But I never
got there. For out of nowhere came a piece of wood that sent me into a
different direction, rolling over a green carpet, parting the thick grass like a
boat speeding through the Everglades.

The joys of being a novelist are the challenge to personify things in the real
world. From my book titled "The Boys On The Gold Coast" I had the
opportunity to share life from the view of a baseball. I wish you all some
happy reading.

Marvin


Photo from iStockphoto.com

Perfection

By Marvin Ferguson

Jerry loved to take long walks in the park. Surrounded by darkness with only the glow from the Paul Revere lamps along the street, he reflected. Tonight, he thought about being the best pitcher on the "Morning Star" baseball team.

One hundred feet away from a twelve-inch square on the garage wall, he practiced until his tennis ball landed inside the square every time. But that wasn't good enough.

With a good friend, on a corner lot, Jerry continued practicing with a hard ball covered with stitches until it was perfect.

But what is perfect? Perfection was allowing the ball to rocket over the edge of home plate and roll off either the right or left side. Later, most batters struck out and the fans loved it.

Smiling, back in the park, jerry thought about another goal of perfection: reading the Bible assured jerry's security in Jesus Christ. "I can't miss," he thought.

The average walk for jerry was an hour. With pleasant thoughts flowing through his brain he could stay in the park all night.

Working Together, introducing Marvin P. Ferguson

      Baseball is my favorite sport. As a kid growing up in the windy city, Chicago, I often gathered on a corner lot with my friends in blue jeans, sport shirt, and tennis shoes. With a tattered baseball and splintered bat we played baseball all day.

Living on the north side of Chicago, I was a Cub fan. Every chance I got I found myself at Wrigley Field watching them play ball.

Baseball games intrigue me. I like to watch all the action. A curve ball, home run, or spectacular catch, keeps me with the other fans sitting on the edge of our seats. Then there is stuffing a hot dog in our mouth and gulping down ice-cold soda.

Working together was important. Good pitching, fielding, and hitting produces a winning ball club.

As a Christ follower for many years, led by the Holy Spirit, we work together. Just like in baseball, teamwork throughout my life is important.


By Marvin P Ferguson

A diehard baseball fan and former youth baseball coach along with personal experience, Marvin P. Ferguson is the author of Boys on the Gold Coast, a story about a group of boys who are the composite of every kid who wasn't afraid to get dirty, or play with splintered bats and tattered baseballs and use his imagination.