Mile-High Dream

Tom Jeffries

Mile-High Dream

In 2007 as my baseball season was ending, my coaches were talking about next year’s big trip. This trip was one of my biggest dreams. The dream was to play baseball in Cooperstown, New York. This reality did not happen because the week my team was given was the last week in August. School was already in session and I was playing baseball with my Junior High team. Parents on my team did not want their children to miss the first part of school, now the dilemma started. Where should we go instead of Cooperstown? The majority of the team ruled for a trip to Colorado. This trip in the summer of 2008 was my most memorable trip.

To begin with, both of my parents were unable to attend this trip because of work conflicts. My grandmother offered to take me along with my sister Megan. My grandmother’s sister lives in Colorado, so this was the perfect opportunity to visit with her family. We traveled on airplane, this being my first experience, and when we landed my Aunt Jeanie and Uncle Scott were waiting to take us to their farm outside of Denver. They raise chickens, sheep, and horses. I felt uncomfortable at first because I was not accustomed to country life. Their house was rustic and I was not familiar with this set-up. They did not have the comforts I was used to. After being at their house for only a day, I learned to love living on a farm. In the morning. I would go and get fresh eggs and eat them for breakfast. I went horseback riding and sheared the sheep. This was going to be a great trip!

Following this further, I did come to Colorado to play baseball. I met my team at the Colorado Rockies Game two days later. This was a great experience because we were able to get some of the player’s autographs. The following day was the start of our baseball tournament. I had heard that baseballs travel faster and further due to the high altitude and was amazed to find out how true that was. My first game was against a team from Nebraska, I...