The Game of Life
Standing on the mound with the adrenaline rushing through her body, Baily Johnson forgot all about her throbbing leg from where she had been hit earlier in the game. Her rivals loaded the bases at the bottom of the seventh inning, and the score board read 5-4. Her team was only winning by one, and she had already thrown two strikes. She tightly focused her eyes on her catcher's glove. With every muscle in her arm contracted, she released and threw the ball with the strength and precision that marveled fans all over the upstate and even caught the attention of college coaches.
"Strike" the umpire said. The game was over, and they had just won the season opener of Baily's senior year. Relief and excitement overtook her body as she made her way to the dugout. She was so excited about the way she had pitched tonight because she knew that her team's number two pitcher was breathing down her back. Her name was Casey,and she was probably the only one on the team that Baily did not like. It all started at the beginning of the season. "Wow Casey," our coach said "you are the best pitcher I have ever seen come through this program." Casey had so much natural talent but did not want to work or practice to get better. She was constantly reminding Baily that she was only a sophmore and had already broken Baily's records from last year. Baily knew that she was definitely going to surpass all of her accomplishments, but that is not what bothered her. It was Casey's arrogant attitude and unwillingness to receive advice or coaching from anyone that got under baileys skin.
Last week when she came to practice late she unapologetic response to the team was, "Well I'm here aren't I ?" She was just disrespectful and had no work ethic. Baily quickly gathered her stuff in the dugout. She didnt want to think about Casey any more becasue it did not really matter tonight. She had pitched one of her best games and even though Casey was not far behind her she had not quite reached a level to take her spot, and after tonight Casey had a lot of work to do if she wanted the number one slot. Baily was so happy. My last year is already going just like I hoped, she thought to herself as she drove down the curvy rodes that led to her house. That night as she climbed in bed, she examined her leg which was now doubled in size and beginning to resemble the blue and green tie-dyed t-shirt laying on her floor that she made last summer. Baily gently rubbed her leg, Gah Ive never had a bruise like this before its so sore, pulled the sheets over her head and cut off the light.
Over the next few weeks Baily's softball career kept exceeding expectations, and to the outside world everything was great. However, Baily felt uneasy all the time and no matter how much sleep she got, she was always so tired. The huge bruise on her leg was not fading at all. In fact, it was getting bigger and the pain was getting worse. Her mom and teachers even began to notice her lack of energy.
" Maybe you have mono, Baily" Mrs. Johnson told her one night at dinner
" No, i don't think so. I'm really fine" Baily said
" Well I'm really concerned so I scheduled you an appointment for the doctors tomorrow"
" Mom I'm fine! It's probably just a cold" she said trying to persuade her mom. " I'm OK, really I am"
" Well then it wont hurt you to go to the appointment, and I want him to look at your leg because it should be going down a little by now"
Realizing that it was a moot point, Baily decided not to argue and finished eating. She went to the doctor the next day and over the next week she tried to get more sleep in between school and practices. The next Tuesday while Baily was still at practice, Mrs. Johnson received an overwhelming phone call.
"Mrs.Johnson?" the deep voice on the other line said.
"Yes, this is she"
"Hi, this is Doctor Jarin from Anmed hospital" he said
"Oh, Hi Doctor Jarin" Mrs Johnson said.
"Yes, um I'm afraid I don't have good news for you" Mrs. Johnson did not reply but Dr. Jarin could hear her breathing on the other line so he continued, "Well Baily's test for mono came back negative, but I'm afraid her blood work shows that she has something much more severe and complicated. You see Mrs. Johnson, Baily has been diagnosed with Leukemia." It was all Mrs. Johnson could do to keep the phone to her ear.
"I reassure you ma-am that we will do everything possible and we will fight this together" Dr. Jarin said trying to give hope and looking for a reply from the distraught woman on the other line."
All Mrs. Johnson could utter was, " What do we do?"
Dr. Jarin explained all the treatments and told them that they would begin chemotherapy next Saturday morning. Mrs. Johnson hung up the phone and fell onto the couch. "How was she going to tell her seventeen year old daughter that every day would now be fight for her life? Suddenly the silence was interrupted by Baily slamming the back door. She was just getting home from practice and was headed up to shower. Her mom followed her to her room and told her to sit down because she had something to tell her. With tears in her eyes, Mrs. Johnson began to explain all the doctor had told her. Even though her mom tried her best to present the horrible situation as more of a challenge than an actual disease, Baily couldn't help but feeling angry and scared. Emotions along with thoughts began to overwhelm her body. There was so much ahead of her.
What about softball the championships? They were only two months away. What about prom and graduation and the rest of my senior year? How could this happen to me? I'm only only seventeen! Baily's head was about to explode with questions. She stared at the dent in her blue wall from where she had punched it after losing in the playoffs last year. Would she ever play softball again, she wondered. She was sitting on her bed with tears streaming down her face like rivers. Baily felt as though the world was spinning like a tornado and she was trapped in the middle.
The next few days were a blur. She kept quiet in the hallways and classrooms. She tried to hide the news from everyone at school but somehow they already knew. Refusing to miss softball practice against the doctors wishes, she tried to live a normal life with each day that passed. She kept a smile plastered on her face to hide to the hurt inside and refused to talk about her situation. No matter how hard she tried to cover it up and be strong the Chemotherapy was having a serious affect on her. Baily had even less energy than before and was constantly falling asleep in class out of pure exhaustion. She could never keep any food in her stomach the day after chemo. Every meal would come back up within the next hour. The first morning that Baily woke up with a hand full of hair still left on her pillow, was the worst reminder that this disease was real. She could no longer ignore the signs. She realized this cancer did not care how old she was or how many things she wanted to experience. It was trying to defeat her and Baily knew that she was now fighting it for every breath she took.
She spent so much time on that blue rug on her knees over the next month, deciding not to talk about her situation as much as she could and to take each day as a challenge. To the doctors disbelief she still managed to pitch one game a week, and still remained the best pitcher in the region. She stayed strong for her team, her friends and her family. Baily never missed more than one day of school at a time, even though the therapy was draining so much life from her.
Finally, the playoffs arrived and Baily once again astounded everyone and carried her team to a first round win. She could not let her team down and she wanted to do all she could to make sure Casey would not fill her spot. Her courage and commitment inspired all of her teammates and they picked up their game even when Baily could play. The team survived three rounds of playoff games and was scheduled to play in the state championships that weekend, when Baily passed out in the dugout before practice Friday. Immediately she was rushed to the Emergency Room, and from there they moved her to a room in the hospital. You could see the strain in her eyes Saturday morning when she woke up. The pain in her voice was clearly heard through the quiet laughs used for a disguise. Her team stayed all day Saturday until they were forced to leave. They hated watching her struggle and Baily hated people feeling sorry for her . She had always been a leader and in control, and the helpless view from her hospital bed looking up in their eyes was enough to make her cry. They all said their goodbyes and tried to be positive. Even though everyone smiled and no one mentioned the game, Baily was fully aware that her championship game that she had looked forward to for four years was tomorrow at 1:00 ,and she was not going to be able to play or even sit on the bench. The thought alone felt like someone was stabbing a knife in her back. So she dismissed the idea and tried to fall asleep.
The next day she woke up even weaker than before, and she felt like she was in a blurry dream that she could not wake up from. She soon remembered the game and looked at her phone to check the time. "In two hours the game will start", she though as she lied their wishing she was on the bus with her team. About a half hour later she received a phone call from the team. Tears trickled down her face as all of them except Casey explained how much they missed her and how they were going to win this game for her. She wished now more than ever that Casey would put her pride and attitude aside, so she could talk to her. Baily had so much to tell her. Even though she still did not really like Caesy she wanted the team to win and, she wanted to give Casey every tip she could. She knew Casey had never been in a situation like this, and it was a lot to put on the shoulders of a sophmore. However, Casey never got on the phone. So instead, Baily quietly listened and wished them all good luck. She then quickly told them bye when the nurse came in to check on her. She searched the nurses face for a look or expression to give her some insight to how she was doing. She had quickly learned that asking how everything looked only gave her a smile and answer that sounded like broken record. Once again the nurse was emotionless which still left Baily in the dark. After the nurse left, Baily was exhausted again and fell back to sleep. She finally woke up to the vibration of her cell phone still sitting in her hands. It was Julie her teammate.
" We won Baily we won!! It was 9-8 and we won for YOU!!"
Baily smiled and with the last bit of energy she had left and congratulated the entire team. She was so happy. It was the first time in eighteen years since the softball team at her school had won a state championship and she had been a part of it. They all stopped by after the game to visit and gave her play by play of the exciting game. Baily lied there weak yet content a soft smile lighten her face and she closed her eyes. Suddenly this joy was soon replaced with tears in her teammate Julie's eyes as the doctors removed everyone away from the lifeless bed.
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