My memory always seems pretty bad, but some moments stand out. The details of some of those memories are more crisp, and the emotions are more immediate when they bubble to the surface. I’m sure the two are linked; emotion and the clarity of a memory. It seems lame to link one of those memorable moments in my life to sports, but Reds’ opening day 2014 was one for me. My daughter Cady was three; almost four years old, and I took her to Steak ‘n Shake after school for an early dinner. I had my phone propped up at the end of the booth with live video of the Reds game playing as we put together the little cardboard car they give out there to keep kids busy before the food comes. She acted interested in the game from time to time.

There was nothing special about the moment at the time, but it was a nearly perfect combination of some feelings I miss about where I grew up, and where time had led me. I didn’t know it then, but it was extraordinary. Maybe we never realize those things at the time, and that’s the point. I don’t know.

Anyways. I like Reds baseball for many reasons, and surprisingly few have to do with the sport itself. They’re memories of listening to the game with my grandpa. They’re memories of Pete Rose, and being there with my family at Riverfront Stadium when he broke the all time hit record. Memories of the 1990 World Series run when I was sick with strep throat and spent the series with my grandma instead of at the game. Watching an awful Reds club on TVs in bars at Purdue with Griffey Jr. on the club. The memory of watching a game with Brennyn and her family in El Paso…and awkwardly wondering why they didn’t at least play songs during the commercial breaks when streaming online.

Baseball is so intertwined with life for me — and I think for a lot of us. It’s always there. It’s a dependable marker of time that becomes irrevocably linked to what may otherwise be the monotony of life. Baseball is one of those things that unexpectedly turns out to be a valuable touchstone for remembering what we all hope to: every day.