7 Days Until Opening Day

Opening Day 2008 for the Timber Rattlers is April 3. That is 7 days from today. This off-season, the countdown will be based on books. Each day between now and Opening Day 2008, I will pick a random book out of my library and excerpt a passage off the page number corresponding with the number of days remaining to the first pitch of the new season. I will try not to repeat a book during the countdown.

Today's book is Peanuts: The Art of Charles M. Schulz. This excerpt is a letter written by a fan of the strip to Jean Schulz after the death of the creator of good ol' Charlie Brown.

"I remember [as a child] often being consumed by feelings of profound anxiety and unrest, and yet as soon as I could come home to read my Peanuts books, I was peacful, even happy."

"When I was about 11 years old I had to go into the hospital and I was very scared. My mother had to leave me after visiting hours, but my stuffed Snoopy didn't. I held it all night long."

"I often identified with Charlie Brown's feelings of inadequacy, of not fitting in anywhere. And my favorite character was Linus, who was sensible but had an almost magical sense of the power of his innocence and imagination."

"Charlie Brown and the gang were a solace and a balm to my soul. I always wanted to tell this to Mr. Schulz. So now, I tell you."

Sparky [Charles Schulz's nickname] once said, "I would be satisfied if they wrote on my tombstone 'He made people happy.'"

He did that, and so much more.

Put today's excerpt in a baseball context.