When Perfect Isn't

I try not to talk about baseball too much, but today I can't help myself. Last week, a pitcher for the Detroit Tigers threw a perfect game... well, almost perfect. In a perfect game, a pitcher retires all 27 batters in order - no walks, no hits, and no errors. It has happened exactly 20 times in over one hundred years of professional baseball. In last night's game, Armando Galarraga retired the first 26 batters he faced, only to give up a hit to the 27th. Only it wasn't really a hit, as the batter reached first base only because the umpire made the wrong call, a fact he admitted to after watching the video replays.

Did Armando Galarraga reach perfection in that game? One might argue that he did, as the only flaw belonged to the umpire. But the record books will show a one-hitter, not a bad accomplishment, but short of the immortality that goes along with a perfect game.

I'd like to think that Galarraga’s game was perfect, even if the statistics show otherwise. He will not likely ever throw a no-hitter in his career, let alone a perfect game. That game was probably as close as he will ever get. I say we just change the call and make it all good, but I know that will not happen. The truth is, he was not, technically, perfect that evening, so he should not be rewarded for something he did not attain.

This week we end our school year. Our year was not "perfect." We made plenty of errors, allowed way too many runs, and sometimes even tripped over first base. At other times, we might argue, the umpires made bad calls. But through it all, we had to keep playing. Despite our inconsistencies, we still keep trying to throw perfect games. But even a "perfect game" is pitched by a completely flawed pitcher, playing with flawed teammates, a flawed manager, and the aforementioned flawed umpire. We will not reach perfection until we set foot (or will we fly?) into heaven.

I am directed by God to keep trying for perfection, though I will not attain it in this life. As a school, we are commanded to reach for it as well, though we know reaching it is impossible. We keep trying because we are not allowed to give up. We keep trying because God put us here to make a difference, and who are we to quit when the left fielder makes an error, the other team hits three consecutive home runs, or the umpire blows a call? We need to play hard every inning, until the last batter is out and God turns off the stadium lights and shuts down the concession stands. Our Manager expects nothing less.

That's how it always is with God

I used to remark "The older I get, the faster the years go by." While the years continue to fly by, I have stopped remarking about it. Unfortunately, it has become the norm now, something I have grown accustomed to, though I don't necessarily like it. There are some benefits, however, to time flying, such as:

• Christmas gets here quicker (Does it come twice a year now?)
  
• My upcoming vacation will get here faster than I can say "Myrtle Beach." (Unfortunately, it will also be over before I can say "Where'd it go?")
• Children spend less time in diapers (Wasn't he just born? And now he's graduating?)

Another school year has passed, and of course it seemed to go by very quickly. But the issue really isn't how fast the year went by, but what we did with the year we were given. You see, each year is a gift from God, whether it seems to crawl by like a snail or flash past like lightning. Whether it is wracked with pain, is full of triumph, or seems to contain some of each. Those who use every moment for God and his glory will receive a double benefit: they will have a better life, one lived in accordance with God's plan, and with each passing day they will have moved another step closer to the day when they will see God clearly, face to face, in his glory.

Ecclesiastes 3:14-15 reads (in The Message) "I've... concluded that whatever God does, that's the way it's going to be, always. No addition, no subtraction. God's done it and that's it. That's so we'll quit asking questions and simply worship in holy fear. Whatever was, is. Whatever will be, is. That's how it always is with God. "

This year was a good one. Sure, it had its ups and downs, like any year. In the end, there is one thing that is inevitable, and another that is optional. Getting a year older is inevitable; getting a year wiser is optional. I'd like to think that our students, our teachers, our board, and our parents all did both. I believe that we are learning to recognize that all things are done in God's timing, not ours, and all things are done just exactly the way he wants them done. May God bless you as you finish up this school year. Have a great summer, and we'll see you (except for our seniors!) back here at PCHS next fall.