Over the last two weeks I have had one of those really interesting experiences that reminds you that life keeps marching on.
I am doing some pitching clinics on Sunday afternoons. Each is a one-hour clinic with a few kids from their local rec leagues. The clinics repeat for several Sundays, so I do have the chance to do the kind of repetitive work that leads to improvement.
A new group started on March 8. As I was introducing myself to them I looked at one of the girls (Caitlyn) and she seemed vaguely familiar. I stopped in mid-sentence and said "I've worked with you before, haven't I?" She smiled and said yes. Turns out she had done this same type of clinic with me two or three years ago.
The thing is, she was probably around 10 years old then. She is now 13, I think, and has changed considerably. Back when I worked with her before she was a small, slightly built girl who was just finding her way athletically. She is now a teen, around 5' 6" tall and athletic-looking.
I'm pretty sure that I accidentally pushed her down once when I was trying to demonstrate how to push off the rubber. At the time she wasn't getting it, so I gave her a little push from behind, her foot came down early and down she went. I mentioned that to her and we both had a laugh. She wasn't sure if it was her but thought it might've been.
Then this past week a new girl joined that group. Her name is Claire. I don't remember her quite as well, but she told me she had done this clinic with me a couple of years ago as well. She did seem familiar, but again I am used to seeing her as a little kid, not a teen.
It really is something when you see someone like that after a couple of years -- especially at those two ages. They really do change a lot in a couple of years.
One good thing I saw is that they both maintained a lot of the mechanics we had worked on. Each has some things to work on, but we didn't have to start over from scratch. Caitlyn even remembered the changeup I'd taught her back then and threw it well this past Sunday. Nice to see the work we put in stuck. When they come in for clinics and then go away you just never know.
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I am doing some pitching clinics on Sunday afternoons. Each is a one-hour clinic with a few kids from their local rec leagues. The clinics repeat for several Sundays, so I do have the chance to do the kind of repetitive work that leads to improvement.
A new group started on March 8. As I was introducing myself to them I looked at one of the girls (Caitlyn) and she seemed vaguely familiar. I stopped in mid-sentence and said "I've worked with you before, haven't I?" She smiled and said yes. Turns out she had done this same type of clinic with me two or three years ago.
The thing is, she was probably around 10 years old then. She is now 13, I think, and has changed considerably. Back when I worked with her before she was a small, slightly built girl who was just finding her way athletically. She is now a teen, around 5' 6" tall and athletic-looking.
I'm pretty sure that I accidentally pushed her down once when I was trying to demonstrate how to push off the rubber. At the time she wasn't getting it, so I gave her a little push from behind, her foot came down early and down she went. I mentioned that to her and we both had a laugh. She wasn't sure if it was her but thought it might've been.
Then this past week a new girl joined that group. Her name is Claire. I don't remember her quite as well, but she told me she had done this clinic with me a couple of years ago as well. She did seem familiar, but again I am used to seeing her as a little kid, not a teen.
It really is something when you see someone like that after a couple of years -- especially at those two ages. They really do change a lot in a couple of years.
One good thing I saw is that they both maintained a lot of the mechanics we had worked on. Each has some things to work on, but we didn't have to start over from scratch. Caitlyn even remembered the changeup I'd taught her back then and threw it well this past Sunday. Nice to see the work we put in stuck. When they come in for clinics and then go away you just never know.
More...
