Finding Hope During the Dark Days of Preparation – Catholic Studies Blog
Student Profiles

Finding Hope During the Dark Days of Preparation

McQuills Slides

Matt McQuillan, Senior Catholic Studies student, writes of his experience preparing for his last Tommie baseball season this Spring as he spends a much deserved Spring Break in Florida with the team.  His reccount of the toils and tribulations of such preparations seem to be reminiscent of each Catholic’s journey during the Lenten Season.  This is a great opportunity for reflection on this Lenten experience, as the Eternal Ray of Hope, Jesus in the Resurrection, remains waiting on the horizon to dispell the long dark days of Lent.  Here is Matt’s experience:

It has been a very, very long winter.  The long dark days, the high cost of heating a poorly insulated duplex, and the seemingly endless cycle of snow emergencies have all contributed to its incessancy.  But for myself, and the University of St. Thomas baseball team, this winter has been particularly long.  Perhaps it was the month of 5:30 A.M. practices we endured.  More likely it is the monotony of attempting to practice baseball indoors by doing the same drills day after day…after day.  Needless to say, there were many mornings when we asked ourselves, “is this really worth it?”

But as the days get brighter, heating bills start to go down, and the snow melts away, we find in the depths of our heart a hope for one thing …the sunshine state.  Each year over spring break 26 deserving players travel down to Florida for a week of baseball and bonding.  This trip is our ray of hope during the dark days of preparation.

The trip to Florida is a privilege–one that is earned.  For those that make the cut, it is a time of much excitement and energy.  We get to spend a week in Florida playing baseball in perfect 85-degree weather with 25 close friends.  Not a bad way to spend spring break!  On top of all of that, this excursion comes at a limited cost to us players.  Beyond paying for our flight, everything we could need during this week is covered.  We get a hotel room, meal money, and transportation while we are down there.  It almost seems to good to be true doesn’t it?

Ok, so it’s not quite as glamorous as I made it sound.  For one thing our hotel rooms are filled with four guys to two beds, so half the nights you sleep on the floor.  Secondly, our meal money is never quite enough to fill up a group of hungry college boys.  And thirdly, our transportation consists of packing roughly eight sweaty baseball players, equipment and all, into four different vans.

More to the point, though the baseball is fun, it really takes a toll on your body.  With two hours of warming up for the games, and then around 6 hours for a double header, we spend an average of about 8 hours a day at the ballpark.  Those 8 hours of running, throwing, diving, sliding, and swinging, all in 85 degree heat with the sun beating down on our fair Minnesota skin, really suck the life right out of you.  By the time dinner rolls around most guys aren’t sure if it’s worth it to stay awake and try to find some food or if they should just collect their meal money and go to bed.

Nonetheless, the trip is something special.  No one complains about being in Florida for a week to play baseball, no matter what conditions we are dealing with.  The fact of the matter is that our alternative is 5:30 A.M. practices in the field house.  So, we welcome the long hot days, the sore bodies, and the often times quite serious sunburn.  We consider ourselves fortunate to have such an opportunity, and we realize each year that this trip makes all of the preparations “worth it.”

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