Stepping Across the Line
Ryan Brouwer
Yawn, waking up at 6:00 is hard, especially when you fell asleep at 1 A.M. the night or morning before after packing a suitcase for a week. I wished I could fall asleep in the car on the way to the Cities, but I forgot a pillow and I’m too nervous and excited to anyway.
Finally, my family and I pull into the airport. My mom, dad, and I hop out and walk into the terminal. I take off my shoes and belt and empty out my pockets to go through security after I checked in my suitcase. I walk into the aisle to get to the gates. I say good-bye to my mom and my dad says jokingly “Should I have brought my M4 along?” My mom says more seriously “I wish you would have!” I didn’t realize until later why she said that.
We got in easily and had 2 hours to burn. We ate at McDonalds and had a great McMuffin for breakfast. After that I drew and listened to my iPod while my dad tried to learn some Spanish words. My cousin called right before we got on the plane to Houston where we would meet the rest of our group. All he wanted to say was that he had a Spanish nickname for me. It was “Baño”, which means bathroom and I silently thought, “This is going to be a long week.”
The plane ride to Houston went all right except it was boring because my dad got the window seat. After we got to Houston we had dinner at a McDonalds and waited for the group that came from Chicago. They finally came about an hour later and I got some wisecracks thrown at me because I was wearing a Twins shirt.
We then got on an airbus to go to Mexico. When we got into Juarez there were soldiers all over with AK-47’s. I asked my dad why that was and he said that Juarez was the most violent city in the world and had high crime rates. Now I understood why my mom wanted dad to take his gun. Later that week, we saw a tank drive through the street next to the orphanage we were working at.
At the end of the week we climbed up a mountain that said, “The Bible is the truth. Read it!” It also had a cross on the top of it. When we got up there it was perfect, because when you looked at it from one side the sun was shining right behind it and it was beautiful. We stayed up there for about an hour to take pictures. We were also encouraged to pray over Juarez that was right under us. We could also pray for the U.S. city, El Paso, which is the same city as Juarez but is split by the border.
That day we went to a Mexican diner and to the market to buy some souvenirs. First, we went to the market and there were many Mexican souvenirs, from pocketknives to necklaces to sombreros to carved wooden statues. After an hour or so there we had Mexican food at a really good Mexican restaurant.
The next day we had one more day of playing with the hundreds of kids there so we didn’t do much work that day. At about 6 A.M. the next day we left for the airport. A lot of kids were crying because they enjoyed having us there. One girl even tried to run along with us and come with us to the airport.
While we were there, there were some different things going on. One was a handball tournament that they held and won. They were the champions out of the orphanage league of Juarez. Another was a soccer, or futball game. In the middle of the game, one of the girls from the orphanage got tripped and ran into a wall. She got hurt and might have even gotten a concussion. All of this was on a concrete floor with a concrete wall on one side and concrete steps on another. Also, there was a kid who was riding a Ripstick, a two-wheeled skateboard, fell, and broke his arm. Luckily, they have a doctors and dentist office on their grounds, along with a church and a dance studio.
I would recommend to go on any missions trip because not only is it fun but it also blesses the people you work for.
Monday, May 16, 2011
A Twins Game
A Twins Game
Ryan Brouwer
It all starts when we pile in a car to begin the 2-hour trip to the Twin Cities for a Twins game. The loudness of the car and the long trip gives you a headache and you start to feel sick to your stomach. You crack a window and feel a little better. You step out of the car at a gas station to stretch while the workers fill up your car with gasoline. You then start a movie or fall asleep. You wake up as you start to stop and go in the city traffic. You start up a car game like the License Plate Game or The Alphabet Game.
You finally see Target Field but lose it when you pull into the parking ramp. You stop to buy an over-priced ticket and go find an open parking space. With all the honking and even some swearing outside your car it’s hard to concentrate. You finally find a space on the 5¬¬¬th floor. Now you begin the walk to Target Field. Halfway there you realize you forgot your tickets so you have to go back to the car. You get the tickets and begin the journey again. As you near the field, you start to smell all the glorious smells of baseball.
As you walk through The Plaza you feel excited. “There’s the Bronze Glove! Can we sit in it?” your brother asks. Your mother answers hurriedly and nervously, “After the game.”
You’re handing your ticket to the ticket master with your mom behind you. You’re through but your mom gets stuck while getting her purse checked. You dad in front of you doesn’t notice it. “Should you stay back for your mom or catch up with your dad?” you think in panic mode. You decide to wait for your mom. When your mom gets through she says “Thanks, but you should have gone with your dad.”
You finally get to your seats after basically drooling over hot dogs, brats, pretzels and cheese, and everything else. The only thing bad about this stadium is that there is only one place that sells mini doughnuts, and they are the best, so there is a long line, all the time.
The game is kind of slow because the Twins have wasted the White Sox ever since the first inning. The score is 7-0 going in the 9th . We begin to pack up our things but then the White Sox make a come back. After two singles the White Sox clear the bases with a 3-run homer. It is now 7-3, Twins, and the White Sox fans are going berserk and the Twins fans are trying to get over their tiny heart attack. After that little scare, the Twins get two outs. Then the Twins pitcher gave up two singles again and walked the next batter. Bases are loaded and the White Sox’s best batter is up. The Twins pitcher gives up 3 balls and it looks like it will be 7-4, but then the pitcher throws in two strikes. Full count, bases loaded, two outs, and the MLB homerun leader at bat. The pitch is a curve meant to curve out of the strike zone but it fails to break. It’s right in the batter’s sweet spot. It’s hit but it might be catch-able over the fence. Nope, the fielder can’t complete the play and it is a Grand Slam. The score is now 7-7 and the next batter gets out on a routine ground ball to the Shortstop.
Bottom of the 9th and all we need is one run. Thome is up and is ready to hit one deep. HE does but it is caught at the fence. Valencia is up but he is focused on just getting on base. He’s up and swings on the first pitch. It’s hit well, a deep line drive, and it is gone. It is a walk off homerun by Valencia. Everyone is jumping up and down, except for the White Sox fans, and we leave.
Every one is happy that we won and also because we are staying at a hotel for the night. Just as we get to the hotel, however, your little brother starts crying. We ask him what’s wrong and he answers between sobs, “We never got to sit in the Bronze Glove!”
Ryan Brouwer
It all starts when we pile in a car to begin the 2-hour trip to the Twin Cities for a Twins game. The loudness of the car and the long trip gives you a headache and you start to feel sick to your stomach. You crack a window and feel a little better. You step out of the car at a gas station to stretch while the workers fill up your car with gasoline. You then start a movie or fall asleep. You wake up as you start to stop and go in the city traffic. You start up a car game like the License Plate Game or The Alphabet Game.
You finally see Target Field but lose it when you pull into the parking ramp. You stop to buy an over-priced ticket and go find an open parking space. With all the honking and even some swearing outside your car it’s hard to concentrate. You finally find a space on the 5¬¬¬th floor. Now you begin the walk to Target Field. Halfway there you realize you forgot your tickets so you have to go back to the car. You get the tickets and begin the journey again. As you near the field, you start to smell all the glorious smells of baseball.
As you walk through The Plaza you feel excited. “There’s the Bronze Glove! Can we sit in it?” your brother asks. Your mother answers hurriedly and nervously, “After the game.”
You’re handing your ticket to the ticket master with your mom behind you. You’re through but your mom gets stuck while getting her purse checked. You dad in front of you doesn’t notice it. “Should you stay back for your mom or catch up with your dad?” you think in panic mode. You decide to wait for your mom. When your mom gets through she says “Thanks, but you should have gone with your dad.”
You finally get to your seats after basically drooling over hot dogs, brats, pretzels and cheese, and everything else. The only thing bad about this stadium is that there is only one place that sells mini doughnuts, and they are the best, so there is a long line, all the time.
The game is kind of slow because the Twins have wasted the White Sox ever since the first inning. The score is 7-0 going in the 9th . We begin to pack up our things but then the White Sox make a come back. After two singles the White Sox clear the bases with a 3-run homer. It is now 7-3, Twins, and the White Sox fans are going berserk and the Twins fans are trying to get over their tiny heart attack. After that little scare, the Twins get two outs. Then the Twins pitcher gave up two singles again and walked the next batter. Bases are loaded and the White Sox’s best batter is up. The Twins pitcher gives up 3 balls and it looks like it will be 7-4, but then the pitcher throws in two strikes. Full count, bases loaded, two outs, and the MLB homerun leader at bat. The pitch is a curve meant to curve out of the strike zone but it fails to break. It’s right in the batter’s sweet spot. It’s hit but it might be catch-able over the fence. Nope, the fielder can’t complete the play and it is a Grand Slam. The score is now 7-7 and the next batter gets out on a routine ground ball to the Shortstop.
Bottom of the 9th and all we need is one run. Thome is up and is ready to hit one deep. HE does but it is caught at the fence. Valencia is up but he is focused on just getting on base. He’s up and swings on the first pitch. It’s hit well, a deep line drive, and it is gone. It is a walk off homerun by Valencia. Everyone is jumping up and down, except for the White Sox fans, and we leave.
Every one is happy that we won and also because we are staying at a hotel for the night. Just as we get to the hotel, however, your little brother starts crying. We ask him what’s wrong and he answers between sobs, “We never got to sit in the Bronze Glove!”
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