It was a quiet week in the M Street Softball League as poor weather and a couple of Bruins games wreaked havoc on the schedule. With the Bruins playing game six this coming Monday and possibly a game seven on Wednesday, it will be more of the same this week.

The games that were played saw Below Average Joe's take down the Swingers, 20-12, on Monday. This was a battle for second place in the Moran division between two clubs that are currently going in opposite directions. We also saw the Telegraph Hill squad run their unbeaten streak to seven as they nipped Pat's Trattoria! 14-11. Pat's has lost a few very close games already this season as they are playing everyone very tough. It won't be long before those losses turn into wins and they rise in the standings.

Tuesday's action saw the Cranberry Cafe upend the Masterbatters, 10-3 behind another good pitching performance by Joey Magee. Cranberry is trying to catch the Stingers in the very tight Feeney division. The middle game saw the Nexus finally score some runs as they got by Stats Bar & Grille/BSB, 11-6. Tony King (3 hits) and Steve Couturier (2 hits) led the way for Nexus. The night closed with Shennanigan's pounding the Stingers, 20-8. Dan Brown (4 hits, 1 HR, 3 RBI) and Luis Colon (4 hits, 3 doubles) each enjoyed a big night at the plate for Shennanigan's.

There was only one game scheduled for Wednesday but it was an important one in the Lucas division. Shennanigan's and the Sidewalk Cafe were meeting for the second time this season with the first game ending in a 9-9 tie. Folks this game was a back and forth affair that saw some great momentum swings. Shennanigan's jumped out to an 8-1 lead before watching Sidewalk roar back to take 10-8 lead into the seventh inning. But Shennanigan's answered the bell in the last inning and scored three of their own to seal the win. Tempers got a little heated at the end of this one but the two teams were able to sort things out and put it all behind them. The two teams will play again in July. The win extends Shennanigan's unbeaten streak to seven games, 6-0-1.

The week closed with the Bulldogs sliding by Cranberry Cafe, 8-7. I would like to tell you who were the stars of the game but I don't have any stats or notes on this one. Instead I'll guess that Sean Gorman and Mike Mullaney came up with clutch hits for the Bulldogs while M Street resident, Tommy McGrath outdueled his counterpart, Joey Magee for the victory. The week closed with the Dorset Club pounding out a 19-18 victory over the Swingers. The loss was the fourth loss in a row for the Swingers while it was the second win in a row for the Dorset street boys.

The following portion of this article has nothing to do with softball but everything to do with us as fathers, parents, and people. It's an incredible survival story but more so it's an opportunity for you the reader to learn a few great lessons from someone who has seen death staring him in the eye. My hope is that this article will help improve your life. Please take the time to let the one's you love know how you feel about them. Tell your dad you love him this Father's day.

Ric Elias was a passenger on US Airways flight 1549 that was scheduled to fly from LaGuardia Airport in New York to Charlotte/Douglas International Airport, Charlotte, North Carolina on January 15, 2009. Six minutes after takeoff the plane struck a flock of Canadian geese, lost power, and was successfully ditched in the Hudson River. The flight crew, which was led by Captain Chelsey "Sully" Sullenberger, performed an aviation miracle which saved the lives of all 155 passengers and crew.

In April 2009, Ric Elias shared his moving experience at the annual TED Conference. These are his words: imagine a big explosion as you climb through 3,000 ft. Imagine a plane full of smoke. Imagine an engine going clack, clack, clack, clack, clack, clack, clack. It sounds scary. Well I had a unique seat that day. I was sitting in 1D. I was the only one who could talk to the flight attendants. So I looked at them right away, and they said, "No problem. We probably hit some birds." The pilot had already turned the plane around, and we weren't that far. You could see Manhattan. Two minutes later, three things happened at the same time. The pilot lined up the plane with the Hudson River. He turned off the engines. And then he said three words -- the most unemotional three words I've ever heard. He says, "Brace for impact." I didn't have to talk to the flight attendant anymore. I could see in her eyes, it was terror. Life was over.

Now I want to share with you three things I learned about myself that day. I learned that it all can change in an instant. We have this bucket list, we have these things we want to do in life, and I thought about all the people I wanted to reach out to that I didn't, all the fences I wanted to mend, all the experiences I wanted to have and I never did. As I thought about that later on, I came up with a saying, which is, "I collect bad wines." Because if the wine is ready and the person is there, I'm opening it. I no longer want to postpone anything in life. And that urgency, that purpose, has really changed my life.

The second thing I learned that day -- and this is as we clear the George Washington Bridge, which was by not a lot -- I thought about, wow, I really feel one real regret. I've lived a good life. In my own humanity and mistakes, I've tried to get better at everything I tried. But in my humanity, I also allow my ego to get in. And I regretted the time I wasted on things that did not matter with people that matter. And I thought about my relationship with my wife, with my friends, with people. And after, as I reflected on that, I decided to eliminate negative energy from my life. It's not perfect, but it's a lot better. I've not had a fight with my wife in two years. It feels great. I no longer try to be right; I choose to be happy.

The third thing I learned -- and this is as your mental clock starts going, "15, 14, 13." You can see the water coming. I'm saying, "Please blow up." I don't want this thing to break in 20 pieces like you've seen in those documentaries. And as we're coming down, I had a sense of, wow, dying is not scary. It's almost like we've been preparing for it our whole lives. But it was very sad. I didn't want to go; I love my life. And that sadness really framed in one thought, which is, I only wish for one thing. I only wish I could see my kids grow up. About a month later, I was at a performance by my daughter -- first-grader, not much artistic talent ... ... yet. (Laughter) And I'm balling, I'm crying, like a little kid. And it made all the sense in the world to me. I realized at that point, by connecting those two dots, that the only thing that matters in my life is being a great dad. Above all, above all, the only goal I have in life is to be a good dad.

I was given the gift of a miracle, of not dying that day. I was given another gift, which was to be able to see into the future and come back and live differently. What would you get done that you're waiting to get done because you think you'll be here forever? How would you change your relationships and the negative energy in them? And more than anything, are you being the best parent you can be?

M Street Softball plays under the lights Monday through Friday with games starting at 6pm, 7:30, & 9pm. Have a great week everyone!