| Addison's Day At Wrigley Clark Sheffield |
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(1)
The little girl’s daddy came tucked her into bed and kissed her on the forehead, saying “Good night, Addison
Grace. I love you.”
“I love you too, Daddy,”
“Now you get some sleep, because tomorrow is a big day.”
“Okay,” said Addi.
(2)
Her daddy left the room and Addi snuggled into her sheet with her blankie in her hands, but she couldn’t fall
asleep. She and her daddy were making a trip tomorrow, just the two of them, and Addi was very excited.
Addison had wanted to take the trip for a long time, but her mommy had said that she was too young. Now that
she was 5, she was old enough. Tomorrow was the last day of the baseball season and she was going to
Wrigley Field to see her first Cubs game.
(3)
Ever since she could remember, which was not very far back, Addison’s daddy had told her about the Chicago
Cubs. He had told her about players and games he remembered from when he was a little boy. He even told
her about players from when her Grandpops was a little boy, which was a long, long time ago.
(4)
During baseball season, Addison would sit in her daddy’s lap and they would watch the Cubbies on WGN. She
even had a picture from the day after she was born: her daddy was holding her in the hospital and they were
watching the game. Well, her daddy was watching the game anyway. Addison was asleep in the picture, but
her daddy told her that she was still cheering.
(5)
After what Addison thought must have been a very long time (it was really only a few minutes), she fell asleep.
When she woke up, the sun was just beginning to peek into her bedroom window. She smelled her daddy’s
coffee and heard him singing as he came up the stairs.
(6)
“You ready to go, Addison Grace?” her daddy asked.
“No, Daddy, I just got up!”
“Well, let’s get you changed and get some breakfast in you, alright All-Star?”
“Okay!”
Addison had already laid out her favorite blue jeans, along with her pink Cubs jersey and her pink Cubs Princess
hat. She liked the hat because it had a hole in the back for her to put her ponytail through. Also, it had pink
ribbons that danced and twirled behind her when she ran.
(7)
After Addi was in her booster seat and all buckled in, they left for the game. It took a while to get to Chicago,
but Addison and her dad had plenty to talk about. Almost before she knew it, she saw the road get very busy
and then saw big buildings outside the car windows. As they came around a bend, Addison saw a big glass
bubble of a building and said: “What’s that, daddy?”
“That’s Soldier Field, Munchkin. That’s where the Bears play. And look, up ahead is Lake Michigan.”
(8)
Addison was sure that she had never seen anything so big in all her life. The lake looked like it went on forever,
and it kept going right along with them as they drove. She saw people at the beach and people riding bikes and
walking dogs. They looked like they were having a good time, but she knew she was going to have a better
time.
(9)
“We’re getting close now, kiddo” said her daddy from the front seat.
Addison saw that the buildings were a little smaller, and very close together. She saw train tracks above the
street and also a cemetery as they drove down narrow streets. Soon, they turned into a lot and a man waved
them into a parking spot. Addison’s daddy gave the man a lot of money and then took her hand and began to
walk. She could see now that other people were all walking in the same direction and that all of them were
wearing Cubs shirts.
(10)
“How many people other people are going to the game, Daddy?” Addison asked.
“Right around forty thousand”
“Wow!”
Forty thousand was a very big number to such a little girl. She didn’t think she could count to it even if she tried.
How could so many people all fit into one place? Addison didn’t even realize there were that many other people
who like the Cubs.
(11)
After walking for a short time, they came to a street corner and then they could see it:
“Is that it, Daddy? Is that Wrigley?”
“Yes, baby girl, it is. Wrigley Field.”
They crossed the street at the crosswalk and Addison could see the green street sign that read “Waveland.”
“This is where they hit the home runs, right?”
“That’s right. And pretty soon, we’re going to see an even better sign.”
(12)
Addison and her dad walked to the front of the stadium, where a giant red sign said: “Welcome to Wrigley Field,
Home of Chicago Cubs.” That was not the sign her dad was talking about though; he was talking about the sign
with her name on it. Addison had heard about it before, she had even seen it in a couple of pictures, but she
saw it in person for the first time when her daddy picked her up and said:
“Look up there, just to the right.”
The sign read: “ADDISON.”
(13)
Addison the girl looked up at ADDISON the sign for a few moments and a great big smile brightened her face.
When her daddy lowered her back down to the sidewalk, she saw that he was smiling too.
“Hey, kiddo, what do you say we take a look at Wrigleyville Sports and grab a few t-shirts? You know your mom’
s going to want one.”
“Okay, then I want to eat ‘cause I’m getting hungry.”
“Sure thing, munchkin.”
(14)
They sat down in their seats along the third base line just in time to catch the end of batting practice. Addison
got to see a couple Cubs players hit and she loved the sound it made when the bat hit the ball just the right
way. She also loved the grass; it was so green and bright, just like the ivy on the outfield wall.
“I like it here, Daddy.”
“So do I, Addison, so do I.”
(15)
The game went by pretty slowly, but the Cubs had a couple of hits and even scored a run in the second inning.
Addison got to eat peanuts, cotton candy, and even a chocolate malt cup (her dad warned her not to tell her
mother that she had eaten so many sweets). They walked around the park and visited the gift shops. Addison
used some of her own money to buy a small pink Cubs bat. Her daddy talked about buying himself a jersey but
then said that her mom would probably not appreciate that very much.
(16)
As the game went along, Addison began to get tired and she laid her head on her dad’s shoulder to take a nap
in the fifth inning. When Addison woke up, she saw that the Cubs were losing 5-1 in the sixth inning. She was
sad because she wanted her team to win and because the other team had scored while she was asleep. She
told herself that she would stay awake for the rest of the game, since the Cubs had been ahead when she was
awake. Her plan almost worked in the seventh, when the Cubs put two men on base with only one out. After a
strikeout and a pop fly though, they ended the inning still behind.
(17)
The Cubs did not give up any hits in the top of the eighth inning and then came up in the bottom of the eighth
with all of their best hitters coming to the plate. The first batter stepped to the plate and hit a single into right
field and then the next batter walked. The third hitter of the inning walked to the batter’s box, took a swing, and
he hit a ball up so high that the centerfielder couldn’t see it. The sun was in his eyes and he dropped the ball.
After that, the Cubs’ fourth hitter was up with the bases loaded. He hit the ball very hard, but the third baseman
dove and made a great catch. With the bases still loaded, the next hitter struck out. Two outs.
(18)
Now Addison was worried; she remembered seeing her daddy sitting on the couch and rocking back and forth
when he saw things like this happen to the Cubs on TV. Addison had her hands on her knees and she was
rocking back and forth and saying:
“Come on, Cubs. Come on, Cubs. Get a hit here. Just a little hit.”
She looked over at her daddy and he was doing the same thing. He was just staring out at the field and rocking
in his seat.
(19)
Walking up to take his swings was the sixth batter in the inning. Addison liked the way he held the bat. She
looked from the batter to her dad and then turned back to the game and that’s when it happened: the batter
swung and Addison heard that same “crrrack” that she had heard during batting practice.
(20)
The ball sailed out, out, out and smashed against the wall in left-center field, sending leaves of ivy floating to the
ground. She thought the ball was lost, but then she saw it fall from the ivy. The centerfielder picked it up, but
the Cubs players were already rounding the bases. All around the park, the crowd was standing and starting to
cheer and yell. Addison had to struggle to see between the people in front of her, but she somehow managed
to get a good view of the field.
(21)
“Yessssss! Go, go, go!” Addison screamed.
By the time the fielder threw the ball back in, the batter was on second base and three runs had scored!
Addison turned to her daddy and saw that he was looking over at her with little tears in the corners of his eyes.
“What’s wrong, Daddy?”
“Nothing at all, kiddo. I don’t think it could get much more right.”
(22)
The big hit had made the score closer but the Cubs were still down 5-4 with a man on second base. Another
base hit would have tied the game, but the next batter struck out swinging and the Cubs had to take the field
again. Sadly, the Cubs were not able to score in the ninth inning. Addison cried when the game ended.
“What’s wrong, Addison?”
“The Cubs lost, Daddy,” Addison managed to say between sniffles.
“Welcome to the club, kiddo,” said her daddy with a little smile.
(23)
After the game had ended, Addison and her dad left the ballpark and headed back to the car. Addison had to be
carried most of the way back and she was asleep almost before she was buckled into her booster seat. She only
woke up when they stopped for gas and again when they got home. When her mom asked her how her day
went, all she could say was:
“The Cubs lost and we got you a shirt.”
“Oh, it’s too bad they lost,” said Addison’s mom.
“It’s okay, momma, there’s always next year.”
(24)
And then Addison Grace got into bed and she fell asleep and dreamed about the next time she could visit the
Cubs at Wrigley Field.
I grew up a Cubs fan because my father and grandfather were Cubs fans (and because WGN was 1 of only 4
television stations available to us) and I can remember the pride and awe I felt when we would go to games at
Wrigley. My dad passed the Cubs on to me as a child and now I have the chance to do the same with my daughter,
whose name actually is Addison. Since she’s only 1 now, I tried to imagine what it would be like for her to see me and
to experience growing up as a Cubs fan herself. Even now, as an adult, I still find myself filled with awe when I visit
Wrigley Field; the sights and sounds always bring me back to those first trips and I feel like a child when I’m there.
Baseball has traditionally been a sport that is passed on from father to son, so I felt that a story dealing with a
father/daughter bond was unique. I believe that the emotions involved hit home with any Cubs fan that has a child,
whether they are an infant or a teenager, boy or girl. I wanted to create something that any parent would enjoy
reading to or with their children, to put on paper what a lot of people feel but can’t properly express. And on an
intensely personal level, I wanted to put into words the love I have for both my daughter and my team and to show
how those loves are sometimes one and the same.
This work has been submitted to the Library of Congress for copyright and I'm in the maddening process of trying to
find a publisher. The thing about children's books, though, is that you've really got to have illustrations to make them
work. While I'm reasonably sure that a publisher could supply some schmoe to draw some nice little pictures, I'd
really like to have a little more creative control over the process. And I would also prefer to give a fellow Cubs fan the
opportunity to create my accompanying illustrations. If you have any leads for potential publishers, or if you or anyone
you know has exceptional artistic ability and a deep and abiding love for the Cubs, please click here to email me.
The little girl’s daddy came tucked her into bed and kissed her on the forehead, saying “Good night, Addison
Grace. I love you.”
“I love you too, Daddy,”
“Now you get some sleep, because tomorrow is a big day.”
“Okay,” said Addi.
(2)
Her daddy left the room and Addi snuggled into her sheet with her blankie in her hands, but she couldn’t fall
asleep. She and her daddy were making a trip tomorrow, just the two of them, and Addi was very excited.
Addison had wanted to take the trip for a long time, but her mommy had said that she was too young. Now that
she was 5, she was old enough. Tomorrow was the last day of the baseball season and she was going to
Wrigley Field to see her first Cubs game.
(3)
Ever since she could remember, which was not very far back, Addison’s daddy had told her about the Chicago
Cubs. He had told her about players and games he remembered from when he was a little boy. He even told
her about players from when her Grandpops was a little boy, which was a long, long time ago.
(4)
During baseball season, Addison would sit in her daddy’s lap and they would watch the Cubbies on WGN. She
even had a picture from the day after she was born: her daddy was holding her in the hospital and they were
watching the game. Well, her daddy was watching the game anyway. Addison was asleep in the picture, but
her daddy told her that she was still cheering.
(5)
After what Addison thought must have been a very long time (it was really only a few minutes), she fell asleep.
When she woke up, the sun was just beginning to peek into her bedroom window. She smelled her daddy’s
coffee and heard him singing as he came up the stairs.
(6)
“You ready to go, Addison Grace?” her daddy asked.
“No, Daddy, I just got up!”
“Well, let’s get you changed and get some breakfast in you, alright All-Star?”
“Okay!”
Addison had already laid out her favorite blue jeans, along with her pink Cubs jersey and her pink Cubs Princess
hat. She liked the hat because it had a hole in the back for her to put her ponytail through. Also, it had pink
ribbons that danced and twirled behind her when she ran.
(7)
After Addi was in her booster seat and all buckled in, they left for the game. It took a while to get to Chicago,
but Addison and her dad had plenty to talk about. Almost before she knew it, she saw the road get very busy
and then saw big buildings outside the car windows. As they came around a bend, Addison saw a big glass
bubble of a building and said: “What’s that, daddy?”
“That’s Soldier Field, Munchkin. That’s where the Bears play. And look, up ahead is Lake Michigan.”
(8)
Addison was sure that she had never seen anything so big in all her life. The lake looked like it went on forever,
and it kept going right along with them as they drove. She saw people at the beach and people riding bikes and
walking dogs. They looked like they were having a good time, but she knew she was going to have a better
time.
(9)
“We’re getting close now, kiddo” said her daddy from the front seat.
Addison saw that the buildings were a little smaller, and very close together. She saw train tracks above the
street and also a cemetery as they drove down narrow streets. Soon, they turned into a lot and a man waved
them into a parking spot. Addison’s daddy gave the man a lot of money and then took her hand and began to
walk. She could see now that other people were all walking in the same direction and that all of them were
wearing Cubs shirts.
(10)
“How many people other people are going to the game, Daddy?” Addison asked.
“Right around forty thousand”
“Wow!”
Forty thousand was a very big number to such a little girl. She didn’t think she could count to it even if she tried.
How could so many people all fit into one place? Addison didn’t even realize there were that many other people
who like the Cubs.
(11)
After walking for a short time, they came to a street corner and then they could see it:
“Is that it, Daddy? Is that Wrigley?”
“Yes, baby girl, it is. Wrigley Field.”
They crossed the street at the crosswalk and Addison could see the green street sign that read “Waveland.”
“This is where they hit the home runs, right?”
“That’s right. And pretty soon, we’re going to see an even better sign.”
(12)
Addison and her dad walked to the front of the stadium, where a giant red sign said: “Welcome to Wrigley Field,
Home of Chicago Cubs.” That was not the sign her dad was talking about though; he was talking about the sign
with her name on it. Addison had heard about it before, she had even seen it in a couple of pictures, but she
saw it in person for the first time when her daddy picked her up and said:
“Look up there, just to the right.”
The sign read: “ADDISON.”
(13)
Addison the girl looked up at ADDISON the sign for a few moments and a great big smile brightened her face.
When her daddy lowered her back down to the sidewalk, she saw that he was smiling too.
“Hey, kiddo, what do you say we take a look at Wrigleyville Sports and grab a few t-shirts? You know your mom’
s going to want one.”
“Okay, then I want to eat ‘cause I’m getting hungry.”
“Sure thing, munchkin.”
(14)
They sat down in their seats along the third base line just in time to catch the end of batting practice. Addison
got to see a couple Cubs players hit and she loved the sound it made when the bat hit the ball just the right
way. She also loved the grass; it was so green and bright, just like the ivy on the outfield wall.
“I like it here, Daddy.”
“So do I, Addison, so do I.”
(15)
The game went by pretty slowly, but the Cubs had a couple of hits and even scored a run in the second inning.
Addison got to eat peanuts, cotton candy, and even a chocolate malt cup (her dad warned her not to tell her
mother that she had eaten so many sweets). They walked around the park and visited the gift shops. Addison
used some of her own money to buy a small pink Cubs bat. Her daddy talked about buying himself a jersey but
then said that her mom would probably not appreciate that very much.
(16)
As the game went along, Addison began to get tired and she laid her head on her dad’s shoulder to take a nap
in the fifth inning. When Addison woke up, she saw that the Cubs were losing 5-1 in the sixth inning. She was
sad because she wanted her team to win and because the other team had scored while she was asleep. She
told herself that she would stay awake for the rest of the game, since the Cubs had been ahead when she was
awake. Her plan almost worked in the seventh, when the Cubs put two men on base with only one out. After a
strikeout and a pop fly though, they ended the inning still behind.
(17)
The Cubs did not give up any hits in the top of the eighth inning and then came up in the bottom of the eighth
with all of their best hitters coming to the plate. The first batter stepped to the plate and hit a single into right
field and then the next batter walked. The third hitter of the inning walked to the batter’s box, took a swing, and
he hit a ball up so high that the centerfielder couldn’t see it. The sun was in his eyes and he dropped the ball.
After that, the Cubs’ fourth hitter was up with the bases loaded. He hit the ball very hard, but the third baseman
dove and made a great catch. With the bases still loaded, the next hitter struck out. Two outs.
(18)
Now Addison was worried; she remembered seeing her daddy sitting on the couch and rocking back and forth
when he saw things like this happen to the Cubs on TV. Addison had her hands on her knees and she was
rocking back and forth and saying:
“Come on, Cubs. Come on, Cubs. Get a hit here. Just a little hit.”
She looked over at her daddy and he was doing the same thing. He was just staring out at the field and rocking
in his seat.
(19)
Walking up to take his swings was the sixth batter in the inning. Addison liked the way he held the bat. She
looked from the batter to her dad and then turned back to the game and that’s when it happened: the batter
swung and Addison heard that same “crrrack” that she had heard during batting practice.
(20)
The ball sailed out, out, out and smashed against the wall in left-center field, sending leaves of ivy floating to the
ground. She thought the ball was lost, but then she saw it fall from the ivy. The centerfielder picked it up, but
the Cubs players were already rounding the bases. All around the park, the crowd was standing and starting to
cheer and yell. Addison had to struggle to see between the people in front of her, but she somehow managed
to get a good view of the field.
(21)
“Yessssss! Go, go, go!” Addison screamed.
By the time the fielder threw the ball back in, the batter was on second base and three runs had scored!
Addison turned to her daddy and saw that he was looking over at her with little tears in the corners of his eyes.
“What’s wrong, Daddy?”
“Nothing at all, kiddo. I don’t think it could get much more right.”
(22)
The big hit had made the score closer but the Cubs were still down 5-4 with a man on second base. Another
base hit would have tied the game, but the next batter struck out swinging and the Cubs had to take the field
again. Sadly, the Cubs were not able to score in the ninth inning. Addison cried when the game ended.
“What’s wrong, Addison?”
“The Cubs lost, Daddy,” Addison managed to say between sniffles.
“Welcome to the club, kiddo,” said her daddy with a little smile.
(23)
After the game had ended, Addison and her dad left the ballpark and headed back to the car. Addison had to be
carried most of the way back and she was asleep almost before she was buckled into her booster seat. She only
woke up when they stopped for gas and again when they got home. When her mom asked her how her day
went, all she could say was:
“The Cubs lost and we got you a shirt.”
“Oh, it’s too bad they lost,” said Addison’s mom.
“It’s okay, momma, there’s always next year.”
(24)
And then Addison Grace got into bed and she fell asleep and dreamed about the next time she could visit the
Cubs at Wrigley Field.
I grew up a Cubs fan because my father and grandfather were Cubs fans (and because WGN was 1 of only 4
television stations available to us) and I can remember the pride and awe I felt when we would go to games at
Wrigley. My dad passed the Cubs on to me as a child and now I have the chance to do the same with my daughter,
whose name actually is Addison. Since she’s only 1 now, I tried to imagine what it would be like for her to see me and
to experience growing up as a Cubs fan herself. Even now, as an adult, I still find myself filled with awe when I visit
Wrigley Field; the sights and sounds always bring me back to those first trips and I feel like a child when I’m there.
Baseball has traditionally been a sport that is passed on from father to son, so I felt that a story dealing with a
father/daughter bond was unique. I believe that the emotions involved hit home with any Cubs fan that has a child,
whether they are an infant or a teenager, boy or girl. I wanted to create something that any parent would enjoy
reading to or with their children, to put on paper what a lot of people feel but can’t properly express. And on an
intensely personal level, I wanted to put into words the love I have for both my daughter and my team and to show
how those loves are sometimes one and the same.
This work has been submitted to the Library of Congress for copyright and I'm in the maddening process of trying to
find a publisher. The thing about children's books, though, is that you've really got to have illustrations to make them
work. While I'm reasonably sure that a publisher could supply some schmoe to draw some nice little pictures, I'd
really like to have a little more creative control over the process. And I would also prefer to give a fellow Cubs fan the
opportunity to create my accompanying illustrations. If you have any leads for potential publishers, or if you or anyone
you know has exceptional artistic ability and a deep and abiding love for the Cubs, please click here to email me.
 |