For the past several years, my boys have participated in Cincinnati Reds Youth Baseball Camps.  During these camps, the camp director always has a memorable saying that he repeats several times a day.  The one that sticks out to me the most goes as follows:

“Baseball is a game of failure.  There are winners, and there are learners.”

Baseball is one game where the athletes fail most of the time.  A good record is to be able to successfully get a hit around 30% of the time.  That means the other 70% of the time, the athlete isn’t accomplishing what he had hoped.  Yet he never gives up!  He plays and plays with his whole heart waiting for the time when he does get that hit.  He is constantly learning: learning about himself, learning about the pitcher, and learning about the game.  Winning is great, but learning is even better!

One year my husband coached a Little League team.  The boys played their hearts out, but they just couldn’t seem to win very many games.  They were the second to last team in the league.  Then came the end of season tournaments.  Somehow the boys pulled out win after win just at the right time.  You see, even though they had not been winners all season, they had been learners.  That learning came to fruition at just the right moment, and they ended up winning the entire tournament!

Winning is great, but the moment passes.  Learning lasts forever!