A father and son made a trip to improve their baseball skills but instead ended up with a profound life lesson.
In Montgomery, Alabama, Brian Robinson and his son Carter rented a batting cage to practice some slugging. They ended up finding a bucket full of baseballs. Most of them were aged, with browning showing the number of years they’d been played.
But that wasn’t the only thing of interest with the bucket of balls.
On the bucket, there was a note from a stranger.
“Hope someone can use some of these baseballs. I pitched them to my son and grandson for countless rounds,” the note read.
As Robinson continued to read the emotional letter, he learned that the previous owner decided to give up the items because his family was all grown and gone. And while the years have passed and bonding over catch were long gone, the writer of the note said that he’d give anything just so he could relive those moments.
He ended the note by saying, “If you are a father, cherish these times.”
The message resonated with Brian and his wife Stormy, and they couldn’t help but cry. A random moment became a subtle reminder of how childhood years are fleeting, and that they should spend time with their kids as much as they can. Because once it passes, these moments can never be taken back.
The letter and the baseballs were traced back to Randy Long.
He said he surrendered the items with the note so he could inspire people, especially parents who share the same love for America’s favorite sport.
Long grew up with the sport. He loved watching and coaching his kids. The memories he built around those moments meant so much to him that when he came across the bucket of old balls, he couldn’t bring himself to throw them away.
He hoped, that by “bequeathing” them from one father to another, he could have his closure.
“Yeah, I think it was like a sign-off type thing,” Long said to Steve Hartman from CBS. “Ok, that chapter is gone, let’s see what else is coming on.”
But fate wouldn’t let him sign-off that easy. At least not yet.
Unbeknownst to him, the Robinsons were about to give him some “bases to fill”.
Carter lost both his grandfathers at a very young age. Both men didn’t see Carter grow up to be the baseball player that he is.
If it was a twist of fate or just plain luck, their lives are now set to fill each other’s void.
Stormy said her family would love for Long to come over and watch Carter play.
Long gladly obliged and offered something the Robinsons would never forget.
Long asked Carter if he would like to play catch.
“I’m sure a lot of people across the country now are realizing that’s not just a bucket of balls anymore,” Brian told CBS News.
And while others see a bucket of beat-up balls, Long and the Robinsons see a story of how strangers became like family.
Watch how a bucket of balls brought together three generations of baseball fans in the heartwarming video below!
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