Saying goodbye to Roy…

Earlier today I watched the broadcasted memorial for the recently passed baseball player, Roy Halladay. It was very sad and I’m not ashamed to say I shed a tear during some of those great speeches. It was a moving tribute to a man who passed far too soon.

As a diehard Blue Jay fan, I had the honor to see Roy “Doc” Halladay pitch in person. I only saw him pitch one time, and that game was in May of 2007. I saw Roy pitch against the Red Sox, and he lost to Boston and their knuckle ball pitcher, Tim Wakefield. Was a great game.

I had heard a rumor earlier in the day that Roy had flu like symptoms, and we thought Halladay wasn’t going to pitch. But it took the mound, tossed over five innings and gave up five runs to the Sox. When I got home that night, I heard that Roy Halladay was sent to the hospital following the game. Hours after he got there, Halladay was given an emergency appendectomy. You read that right, Roy pitched over half a game with appendicitis! How is that for dedication?

I was in the sixth row behind the Jays bench that day, and that’s the Roy I’ll always remember. The guy who’s gut hurt like hell, but he still showed up for his team and kept them in the game as long as he could. Even after the fact, Roy still felt bad about his performance, refusing to make excuses and promising to play better. No one was ever as hard on Roy as he was on himself, and that’s what made him one of the greats.

Watching his memorial on television (Broadcast all over Canada), it made me sad not only cause he passed, but he was two years younger than me which forced me to take a moment and reflect on my own mortality. Roy also had two boys like I do, and our boys are rather close in age. That’s my biggest fear, leaving my boys while they’re still so young. Right now I want to hug my boys so bad, and they’ll get a big one on Friday. They’ll have no idea why, but they’re still getting one.

Watching a service like that reminds you how valuable life is, and how we shouldn’t take a single minute for granted. I’ll finish this up with a quote from Chef Anthony Bourdain: Your body is not a temple, it’s an amusement park. Enjoy the ride.

Farewell Roy, you will be missed.

Peter