Sometimes, it is just good to try something new. It’s okay to consider something we might find difficult. It might just turn out to be a joyful experience and make our hearts happy. Our efforts to just try could replace stress, boredom, and depression and reward us with happiness, satisfaction, and a sense of purpose. We can all keep growing, learning, and improving.
“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity.” —Amelia Earhart
Ask any softball player, and they will tell you the most difficult thing to do is to hit the softball. The swing is significant for making good contact with the ball. Developing an effective swing can give batters more confidence. It seems softball is not only a physical game but a mental game, too.
Let’s see what some SaddleBrooke Senior League Softball players have to say about their swings:
Jim Watts says his swing starts with his legs and hips, and he is careful to keep his hands and shoulders back. As he pushes off the ball of the back to begin his swing, Watts tries to use his back knee to move as his hips begin to rotate. Jim says it is important to stay parallel to the ground and keep your head up. He moves the knob of the bat toward the ball while keeping his lead arm at a 90-degree angle.
Dave Good thinks the front shoulder is significant to drive the ball. Dave says he sees some batters move their head and lose eye contact with the ball. He warns against dropping the back shoulder, resulting in an unlevel position to approach the ball. This can cause the hands to drop and put a loop in the swing. Lastly, Dave cautions that when the back leg collapses, it eliminates any positive hip action in the swing.
Alan Kravitz says he tries to use his front shoulder to track the ball from the pitcher’s hand until he swings. He suggests approaching the ball with arms bent. Alan says he sees players swing without having their arms extended and swinging too early at the ball, making the swing arc too large, which will reduce bat speed and power. Kravitz says he wants his hands to move closer to contact, with his top hand rotating so that, at contact, his palm is nearly facing up. Lastly, Alan offered that the hips should rotate into the contact point.
The confidence it takes to hit a softball is an example of trying to do something difficult. When we try more difficult things, we just might find out that we can do it better than we thought we could. We all do what we have to do. But what’s wrong with trying to do things a little bit better than we think? We can also find satisfaction and more confidence just by trying something new. It has been said that we are not old until we stop trying.