Dave's Deep Thoughts - Baseball's Biggest Problem: Mascots

 

Here's Pastor Dave McDowell's weekly devotional that he sends out to members of his church. Dave is my brother and serves as the Music Minister at Stewartstown UMC in PA.

 

You can buy me some peanuts,

you can even buy me some cracker jacks,

but I DO care if I ever come back.

 

I really do like baseball.

It's not my favorite sport,

but it's the perfect sport for summer.

You can listen to a game on the radio

while mowing the yard or washing the car.

And on a beautiful summer night,

the baseball park is a great place to be.

 

That is, except for the mascot.

You know that guy in the fantasy costume .....

The one that conveniently stands on the top of the dugout blocking your view of the game.....

The one who bounces through the crowd high fiving little children

as you pick up the scent of fur and body odor on a 90 degree day......

Yeah, that guy.

 

I have no problem with the 4th inning race between ketchup, mustard, and relish (bet on mustard).

I can be entertained when a platoon of masked perogies drag the dirt after the 5th inning.

I can even guess who ends up with the baseball

as three crabs play catch me if you can.

 

But people dressed up in fantasy outfits freak me out.

 

As a child, I was once trapped in a railroad car on a hot spring day

with a sweaty six foot Easter bunny who wreaked of cigarette smoke on an Easter egg ride.

As far as I was concerned, Peter Cottontail could keep on hopping.......

that is hopping away from me.

 

At amusement parks,

puffy birds, panda bears, chipmunks,

and all types of action figure come up to me

to either try to dance with me, rub my head, or engage me in pretend sword fights.

 

And don't even get me started on circuses and clowns.

Try to tweak my nose one time Bozo,

and I can't be held responsible for my actions.

 

Going to a major league game isn't so bad.

It's a big place so there are plenty of places to hide.

 

But go to an intimate minor league game and there you are,

you, maybe 1,500 friends, and the mascot.

.

Just try to escape from Baxter the Bobcat.

You can run from Homer the Polecat but you cannot hide.

And Manny the Manatee has no sense of personal space.

 

A few years ago, I went to a minor league game,

eagerly looking forward to a relaxing evening and a good game.

 

What I got was Wally the Warthog.

It took all of ten minutes inside the ball park

till Wally wanted to fist bump me in the french fry line.

 

For those like me with mascot phobias,

there is one safe harbor in a ballpark ....

the public restroom.

For obvious reasons,

mascots aren't able to effectively use the facilities.

And so when Wally wanted to pinch my cheeks,

I bolted for the the men's room.

Escape.

 

I enjoyed 5 pleasant innings watching the hometown Warthogs take it to the Flying Squirrels

Then out came Wally,

armed with his air cannon.

 

Mascots are one thing.

Mascots and weaponry.....

now it's gone too far.

 

Wally had time to blast 10 Tee shirts into the crowd

10 shirts

1500 people

and me.

 

Why am I always the lucky one?

Wally fired and I took it in the chest.

Let me say an air cannon from 12 rows away,

is no laughing matter,

especially when you are holding a full beverage cup.

 

It was hard to tell in my stunned state,

but I think Wally flexed his furry biceps after taking me down.

 

Why am I so uncomfortable around mascots?

I think it is because I know that underneath all the layers of pretend,

there is a real person inside.

 

Now if we are honest,

most of us have an outer layer

that covers the inner self.

 

Some find it easier

to live much of life showing only the outer layer.

 

Others have learned

to reveal more of the inner person

in safe settings, with people they trust.

 

Then there are the few

that have learned that the fullest life

is the life lived with the inner self available to all.

 

As Jesus was approaching the time

to give up His life for the salvation of mankind,

He went to His Father in what is known as His priestly prayer.

One of the central thoughts in this prayer

is that of being known...

Jesus known to His Father

and Jesus known to His disciples.

 

In Biblical expressions,

to know conveys many levels of thought.

Sometimes it means to know one sexually,

but it can also refer to the intimacy of knowing someone

at the deepest level of their spiritual being.

 

Jesus affirmed this relationship with His Father.

He prayed for a world that did not receive Him for who He was.

He prayed for His disciples who knew where He came from,

but He knew that there was more for them to know,

and that would come after His death and resurrection

through the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

That same Spirit is present for believers today.

The Father wants that intimate relationship with us

and for us to share that with each other.

 

Jesus gave us access to that intimacy.

The Holy Spirit invites us to live in that intimacy with each other.

 

No need for furry costumes,

no funny names,

no shows.

 

And asmuch as I dislike mascots,

I choose to want to know those who know Him,

and to be known by them.

May it be so with you also.

 

Oh, the tee shirt was from a championship year 4 years prior.

Now that's a prize worth keeping.....

 

Father, I want those You gave me

to be with me, right where I am,

so they can see my glory, the splendor you gave me,

having loved me long before there ever was a world.

 

Righteous Father, the world has never known You,

but I have known You, and these disciples know

that You sent me on this mission.

I have made Your very being known to them-

Who You are and what You do-

And continue to make it known,

so that Your love for me might be in them

exactly as I am in them.

John 17:25-26