Reflections from the Home Team May 30, 2020

“No person should live with this type of daily fear each and every day. This is what I feel as a black man. Memories of fear from 30 years ago should not rushing back like this. I have a young son who is going to one day grow up into a young man. What will I tell him? He should not have the same fears in this new age. America, we have to do better.”

Tyrone Brooks

Greetings from Cedar Falls,

I am extremely saddened by the tragic events that have taken place in Minneapolis as well as around the country this past week beginning with the death of George Floyd while in Minneapolis police custody.  Those events have sparked both outrage and fear in our nation.

A post from a good friend drove it home for me… The post came from Tyrone Brooks, a baseball friend for many years.  Tyrone and I worked together as he joined the Atlanta Braves Organization as my scouting supervisor here in the Midwest. I have watched his professional career progress over the years through several organizations to his current position with Major League Baseball as MLB’s Senior Director of the Diversity Pipeline Program. This was a new position created by the commissioner to stimulate greater diversity at baseball’s administrative levels. Just as important, I have watched Tyrone raise a beautiful family while always working to impact other’s lives in a positive way. Tyrone has always looked at his work as an opportunity to do something bigger than himself… something I have always known and admired about him.

Tyrone writes:

"True story...You never forget the feeling.... the flashing blue and white lights seen in the rear-view mirror, the pulsing heart rate as the cop car approaches, your body tensing up. What will happen next? Will I be harmed? Will I live another day?

Just yesterday (May 29th) I was driving, and two cop cars started approaching from the rear. Was I speeding? I thought I was doing the speed limit. I could feel my heartbeat starting to race. That same feeling when I got my first speeding ticket nearly thirty years ago not long after the Rodney King beating came immediately rushing back. Will I get beat too?

As the cop cars started getting closer, I started to pull over and I could feel my mouth going dry. My mind started racing. Do I have my license? Do I have proof of registration with me? Just be calm and collected. I want to live! Seconds later   the two cop cars blow past me as I made my way to the shoulder.... finally, I can breathe again.

No person should live with this type of daily fear each and every day. This is what I feel as a black man. Memories of fear from 30 years ago should not be rushing back like this. I have a young son who is going to one day grow up into a young man. What will I tell him? He should not have the same fears in this new age. America, we have to do better."

Tyrone’s friendship has been a blessing to me over the years and he is right, we have to do better!  While baseball continues to break down barriers that often separate people, baseball also gives us so many life lessons we can draw from; and I’ve learned and taught many of them. This event is no exception as life lessons are being learned from this situation by people we love and support in all our communities. As Jackie Robinson stated; “A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.”

As Christians, we have been taught to hold no preconceived notions about different groups of people. We're not to be judgmental, or racist, or prejudiced against people who look different. Right? Well, that’s what I’ve been taught, but I was recently challenged to spend a day “recognizing” my first thought about every person I came across who didn’t look like me in a parking lot, in a car or while shopping… I was to note the first thought that popped into my head. (Given the current Covid 19 situation, that first thought often revolved around are they contagious?) – but after that, I began to realize that I did have some preconceived notions about people who may look different than me. I think we all have some of them.

This challenge has made me determined to fight any predetermined perceptions I may experience on any given day, labels I may have placed on people without even knowing it. Stereotypes and judgments based on appearance are everywhere and usually begin at a very young age because of our upbringing and environment. I hope to do my part in stopping this in future generations, because God truly doesn't care about skin colors. God loves diversity!

I recently read that there are between 25,000 and 35,000 genes in every human cell and up to forty trillion cells in the human body! Somewhere between 100 to 378 genes are involved in the production of melanin—the pigment responsible for skin color. And this same melanin also determines our hair and eye color. God, in His perfectness, put together a formula, so small it can only be realized under high efficiency microscopes, just to create variety in His prized creation. It was no accident He orchestrated us in such a way that every human is unique. He programmed the genes from which all our variations come from… This was what He wanted.

Every ethnicity is the beautiful handiwork of God’s creative mind. His abundance of creativity pushes beyond our human understanding. A variety of skin colors gives Him glory for the vastness of His imagination! And we don’t have to look solely at humans to see evidence of this. Diversity is found in all of His creation. Trees. Flowers. Birds. Horses. Dogs. All glorify God and should be celebrated.

As Colossians 3:11 states, “Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.” And Romans 10:12 says, “For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’”

And notice what He leaves out. He does not categorize any of these groups by their skin color. Why? Because He loves everyone the same. He made each beautiful and unique according to His infinite creative mind. If we are Christ-followers, we are called to be like Jesus, so we must work diligently to fight against labeling people by the color of their skin. God wants us to love each other in the same way that He loves – unconditionally. In fact, God wants us to love in such a way that the people around us will know we are fully devoted followers of Christ. Love is an ongoing and very deliberate choice – not an emotion or a feeling. Let’s choose to love those who may cross our paths each day the way Jesus loves each of us.

One of my favorite baseball quotes comes from a friend who I have scouted with for years. When I was diagnosed with cancer, he told me to “Live life like a 3-1 count”.  For those who may not understand what that means in baseball “lingo” it means when you’re a hitter and the count is three balls and one strike, you’re in control of the at-bat, the pitcher has to throw a strike or you get on base with a walk, it’s your time to take a big swing! I challenge you all to live life like a 3-1 count and take a big swing when the opportunity to do something positive presents itself in helping eliminate the fear that Tyrone described in his post. Our future generations will be better if we do and America will be better for it!

Blessings to all!

Dave

Are you or someone you know fighting cancer... struggling with the physical, emotional and spiritual issues that accompany a cancer journey or other serious health issue? Making ourselves available to others can open up the doors of opportunity for deeper relationships, healing, and transformation. For many, time is one of the most valuable commodities in today's fast-paced world. Sharing time with others is a wonderful gift. It says, "Here I am... for you. To listen, to care, to serve." The power of presence should never be underestimated!  

Be an encourager in someone else’s life!

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