Karen Sagstetter: Pick of the Week [ed. Terence Winch]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photo [detail] by Diane MacEachern

 

No Crying in Baseball

No crying when I struck out swinging.
No crying when a runt smashed a grand slam
off my pitch. Or when I wrecked my legs
black and blue sliding into third. 
No crying when I was picked off
at third for the third time
or when my wondrous fly ball
whacked the rear fence
and bounced back like a prodigal to a centerfield glove.
Not even when my mind wandered to the beach 
and I bobbled the ball and the manager screamed
get out of my life!

I’ll tell you what brought me tears. 
I was in space, orbiting the generous blue earth 
and pressing my face against 
the plain window glass of my ship.
I witnessed ball fields in neighborhoods on every continent,
green diamonds shining through glorious clouds 
and dogs the world over
chasing grounders in the afternoons.

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Karen Sagstetter is author of Commotion, a book of poetry, as well as poetry and fiction in numerous literary journals, two chapbooks of poetry, two nonfiction books, and The Thing with Willie, a collection of linked stories set largely in Galveston. She  studied in Japan as a Fulbright journalist and  worked as senior editor for many years at the Smithsonian’s museum of Asian art and at the National Gallery of Art. She grew up in Texas and now lives in Maryland. 

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Comments

[Mary Kay Zuravleff]

I love this poem! Thanks for featuring it.

[David W McAleavey]

Nice to see this old friend (also this old friend's photo!).

[Christopher J Mason]

Beautiful poem!

[David M Reynolds]

I went to High School with this articulate lady and unfortunately have seen her rarely since our graduation. No matter how often we have seen each other, she always has left me with the thought of her brilliant mind and a wonderful personality to go with it. The above poem in my mind just shows a beautiful interpretation of the famous line by Tom Hanks, "There is no crying in baseball". For all of us that have played the sport, reading this poem brings back so many memories of those mixed emotions the love of this game has given us. Great poem by a truly special lady that I feel lucky to have known over the years. It was fun to read and nice to remember!

[Terence Winch]

You're welcome. I knew you'd like it.

[MIchael Rachlis]

Karen Sagstetter has hit a homerun!

[Bernard Welt]

I know more about baseball now than I did when I opened the link to this page. But I think I always knew it had some connection to eternity and the sublime.

[Terence Winch]

I'm in the same boat as you, Bernard. But many poets are baseball-obsessives (Elinor Nauen, Charles North, David Lehman, P. Inman, Ethelbert Miller, and many more). There will be more baseball poems to come.

[Terence Winch]

And good to see you here, David, as well.

[Terence Winch]

Christopher---Agreed.

[Terence Winch]

David---I'm hoping she was a juvenile delinquent in high school.

[Lawrence Welsh]

It has rattled around in my head for the past three or four days. It's percussive and driving at the same time. But the reason it remains is becasue of its take on death. Baseball and death. The season is now. Bravo.