“The coach sent an email saying he’d be moving positions to give ‘more success’ to players. The only change made was to move our Ashlynn to the bottom of the batter order. When we showed up at the next tryout, the team had already been selected without her. At the next tryout, miraculously, the same thing happened. As parents, we were frustrated. It was so unfair what was happening to her. But if we told her, we knew it would change how much she loved baseball.”
‘Girls shouldn’t be playing baseball. Stick to softball.’ The coach suddenly cut our daughter from the team.’: 7-year-old MVP female baseball player makes ‘advanced plays,’ gets dropped from team
‘That girl wears so much makeup, she must be high maintenance. She’s pretty, so she’s dumb. I see an awful lot of claws out.’
“Growing up, I was often complimented that I was ‘not like other girls’. I loved to play sports, crack jokes and hang out with my brother’s friends. I put my hair in a pony tail and wore blue jeans. And I wasn’t like other girls. Because other girls were… Hmm. I don’t know, exactly.”
‘We need to talk about her weight.’ The doctor then looks at her and says, ‘I think you are old enough to start using exercise equipment too.’ ARE YOU KIDDING ME?’
“He left the room. She looked at me and said, ‘I’m fat?’ Tears started running down her face. My jaw was on the floor. It was too late – the damage was done.”
‘I did not want anything to do with my new son. I refused to touch him or hold him. I did not even want to see him. The diagnosis was delivered, and I cried for 10 straight hours.’
“There was a knock on the door. The doctor walked in, a strange look on his face. I LOST IT. I was inconsolable. I was yelling and crying. I was angry. But most of all, I was scared. I even asked my wife if we should name him something different, instead of Beau Spencer Brooks, Jr.”
‘I like daddy better than you! He always plays with me!’ Soul crushing, right? All the things I do for you go unnoticed, but I’ll do them for you anyway.’
“I’m the one tidying up the toys while you are wrestled with. I make sure all your appointments are up to date, even when I forget my own. I’m the one up till 3 a.m. making the LEGO house you asked for. Hiding Christmas presents.”
‘The waitress came to our table and in her hand, she had a name tag. She asked if she could pin the name tag on his shirt. It says ‘Captain America’
“An act of kindness may seem like a small thing but never underestimate it’s power.”
‘My 8-year-old daughter has autism, one child walked off, refusing to take part in the lesson because my daughter was on her team.’
“Does she have to be on our team?”
