From out in centerfield

February 2, 2012

Today is Groundhog’s Day. The second day of February, and Phil tells us that we will have six more weeks of winter.
Given my recent move, that doesn’t appear to be quite as depressing as when the temperatures are regularly below zero.
Besides the usual question of how long winter will be, today also reminds me of the Bill Murray movie Groundhog Day.
For those of you who haven’t seen it, this is a movie where the day keeps repeating itself no matter what Murray does.
Thinking about that movie makes me wonder about days which I have experienced and which ones I would gladly redo over and over. Winning the conference my junior year of high school in 300m hurdles is high on my list, but some of the best days seem also be the most ordinary.
There are a few from last year to choose from: the day that my school won the National Championship in men’s hockey, and the last regular season day of the MLB season.
Being a St. Louis Cardinals fan I also would not mind reliving game six of the World Series again and again.
Which begs the question, if there are so many days that we want to relive then what would you do if you knew that you could wake up and do the same day all over again?
Would you fly off to Hawaii because the next morning you’ll wake up in your bed again?
Would you buy tickets and go to the Super Bowl?
As a 23-year -old life hasn’t quite taught me everything I need to know quite yet. There is still plenty of things that I have to work on.
There have been some great days already, but there are many, many more to come.
So while this morning I woke up in the same place I did yesterday, it is not yesterday. There are new memories to be made, new games to watch and new experiences to be had.
That is one of the greatest things about sports. The same two teams can play each other hundreds of times, but no matter the score or outcome no game is ever the same twice.
There is always a new story to tell and always a new angle from which to experience something.
With six weeks left of winter there is still plenty of time to enjoy basketball. Local teams will be heading into their playoffs soon, with chances to get to the state tournament.
March Madness is not too far off itself. And soon enough pitchers and catchers will report to spring training and baseball will be back in action.
Today I will think about the days that are forever engraved in my brain, meanwhile look forward to all the future moments. That is as long as tomorrow when I wake up it isn’t February second again.