Opening Day
Ray, people will come Ray. They'll come to Iowa for reasons they can't even fathom. They'll turn up your driveway not knowing for sure why they're doing it. They'll arrive at your door as innocent as children, longing for the past. Of course, we won't mind if you look around, you'll say. It's only $20 per person. They'll pass over the money without even thinking about it: for it is money they have and peace they lack. And they'll walk out to the bleachers; sit in shirtsleeves on a perfect afternoon. They'll find they have reserved seats somewhere along one of the baselines, where they sat when they were children and cheered their heroes. And they'll watch the game and it'll be as if they dipped themselves in magic waters. The memories will be so thick they'll have to brush them away from their faces. People will come Ray. The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game: it's a part of our past, Ray. It reminds of us of all that once was good and it could be again. Oh... people will come Ray. People will most definitely come.
-Terrence Mann (played by James Earl Jones), Field of Dreams
Today is the day where all 30 major-league teams and their fans think they can win it all. When stadiums across the country, resplendant with bunting and balloons, filled with faithful fans, erupt as the first pitch of the season is thrown. This is the day when every fan sitting in those parks expect great things from their hometown team, expect every player to be better, and no one to get hurt. This is the day where hope springs eternal for moribund organizations, frustrated franchises, and even the nomadic Montreal Expos. This is the year long, painful curses will be exorcised, this is the year when hopes and dreams will become tangible reality. When the home team takes the field for the first time, the uncertainties of the long, cold winter evaporate. Here is the player who was brought in from the other league, the promising rookie, and the old friends back for one more year. This is a time that is both a celebration of our national pastime and also the rebirth of Spring.
Today is Opening Day.