and the award for best decision goes to-bryce harper.

i have been thinking a lot lately about certain things. for instance-the idiotic things people say, the uneducated things people say may be a little nicer, the opinions people speak but have no ground for saying those things, and lastly that its graduation time for the class of 2011.... oh and we (my family) cant say a word without getting our heads chopped off, even if it is the truth and even if its honest-its wrong either way.

that being said-my baby brother would be graduating this year. instead he took a risk-passed his GED, and enrolled in college 2 years before any of his classmates/peers would see the inside of a college classroom. he has one year of college under his belt & is currently an employee of the washington nationals after being the number one draft pick overall in a draft class a year older than he was... so many times i have read & heard people say:

"i cant believe a parent would even allow their kid to drop out of school?"

"well you have to remember he is still only a kid, hes only 18 you know?"

"he's just immature"

bryce & the so nevada bulldogs (11 or 12 maybe?)

judge all you want and say what you will but you think about that cousin of yours, brother, sister, daughter, son, etc. that is 15, 16, 17, or even 18 years old... he/she does not look, talk, speak, stand, play, etc... like bryce. lets be honest-when i was 18 i wasnt as mature as he is. im 23 and cant stand that i am so far from my mom and dad. (granted bryce does miss our dog & my moms cooking but who WOULDNT?!) bryce for some reason has always been "older" and more mature-yes, he may seem "immature" playing pro ball but lets also remember that the majority of those players are averaging 28-30. for his age & stature he is MATURE. while most kids his age are preparing to graduate, having parties, leaving home for the first time- he has started his life doing the one thing he has ALWAYS been passionate about. when we were younger, on friday night, when he knew there was a game on saturday he would get completely ready and walk in the living room saying he was ready. my dad would tell him "bryce the game is in the morning". bryce would get bummed and go to sleep with his glove, ball, and uniform... he loved it then-he loves it now. so when he came to us with the idea of moving forward sooner...it wasnt about his family letting him do it-it was about him doing what he loved as soon as he possibly could. bryce always seemed to be big for his age. at age 7 other parents would say "he cant play with my johnny-hes too old". my mom would break out his birth certificate (that she had to start carrying because of this one reason) and show it to the umpire, so he could play. so my parents decided he would play up an age. at 7, he play with 8 or 9 year olds and it seemed to always stayed that way. it appears to be that way now... and will be for most of his career-God willing. he may goof off and have a good time-thats not immature thats loving what you do. my dad worked hard in the vegas heat EVERYDAY since he was a young kid. (my parents are two of the hardest working people i know) they always told us-find something you love and make a career of it. you dont want to wake up one day hating your job-it will make for a miserable life. bryce took that literally. he loves what he does and is having fun doing it.

so to all those who are graduating this year... congratulations and good luck on all your future holds-take what my parents used to tell us kids, to heart. i promise it will make life easier.

to all those who think negatively of my families situation... please tell me everything you remember about your junior and senior year-it wasnt about what you learned in classes (if you say yeah right... youre lying) i bet 99 out of 100 people will say i remember something this person did, what i did, what i wore to prom, where i went, etc.... those last two years usually dont mean much unless your bill gates/steve jobs smart.

to my brother... im proud of you. you graduated with high honors in my eyes-you achieved more than i ever have and more than i ever could have imagined my little toe head brother could have achieved. with your desire and attitude about life-you will go far. stay straight, on the well beaten narrow path, with family & God by your side and nothing will hold you back. i love you brother!