Most people enjoy spending their summers on a beach or by a pool. However, that's not the case for me. Nothing beats traveling to Boston with a friend or two to catch a baseball game at the iconic Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox.
The first game I ever went to was with my dad in 2003. I remember the feeling I got when I first walked onto Yawkey Way. It felt like a summer BBQ party. The smell of grilled food, like Fenway Franks and Italian sausages filled the air. People drinking beer, listening to the live music playing and people standing around talking makes you feel right at home.
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I walked up a flight of stairs that led to my first view of the field. The massive left field wall, known as the Green Monster, was the first thing I saw. I was amazed at the size. As I scanned the outfield, I noticed one red seat in right field. I found out that it stood for the farthest home run ever hit in Fenway Park by Red Sox legend Ted Williams. That was when I knew this was different than any sporting event I had ever been to. The stadium has a historical element to it that adds to the overall experience.
Once the game starts, the stadium becomes electric. Every crack of a Sox player’s bat leads to a thunderous applause and high fives all around. The people that are sitting around you become your best friends for the next few hours. You celebrate, you mourn and you sing together when you're at the game.
“Take Me Out to the Ballgame” is played at every stadium, but Fenway has two songs that are specifically unique to it. “Sweet Caroline” is sung at every Red Sox game in the middle of the 8th inning. The lyrics are shown on the Jumbotron and fans sing in unison. Experiencing it in person is the only way to do it justice. The second song is “Dirty Water,” and is played after the game is over if the Red Sox win.
All of these factors helped Fenway Park become my favorite place on Earth. However, the biggest factor had to be the time spent there with my dad. While we were there, all the problems of life didn't matter and we had some of the most important conversations that helped me become the man I am today. And we just had fun. Even in some of the most miserable conditions, we still had a blast.
One of the best games we attended went from 7 p.m. until 2 a.m., and it was 40 degrees and raining. We moved to the first row in right field because so many people went home. We danced and sang in the rain with the remaining fans. The highlight of the night was when we made a Yankees outfielder miss a fly ball. Sure, it was foggy and raining, but we like to believe us yelling at him from a few feet away led to him misplaying the ball.
We went to at least five games every year together, and we even saw a Paul McCartney concert there, too. One of the last games we went to, we sat on the Green Monster with my fiancé, brother and sister. It may have been cold and rainy, but we all had fun. It was a close game that the Red Sox ended up winning, so we got to sing and dance as a family on the highest point in Fenway.
A few months after that, my father passed away in a tragic accident while on vacation in South Carolina. During his funeral, the first song played was “Sweet Caroline.” All of his friends and family joined as one to sing one of his favorite songs with him one last time.
It also just so happened to be that the Red Sox made it to the World Series that year. My mom and my fiancé accompanied me to Game 1 of the World Series at Fenway Park. We put some of his ashes around the stadium. There's no place he would have rather been. As for the game, the game was one of the best experiences of my life. The crowd was more amped up than I'd ever seen before in my life. The Red Sox won, so everyone went home happy.
Fenway Park is so much more than a baseball park. It has history and is a great place to go have fun and build and create relationships. Even to the non-sports fan, Fenway Park is a place you must visit.
