contents - Gallatin School of Individualized Study - New York ...

Ambiorix E. BaretA Passion for the Gamewhy do the people in the Dominican Republic like baseball so much?Because it is part of our culture. We live with it.When I was a child, I learned about baseball from my mother. She watchedthe game on television all the time, when the electricity permitted, and I saw inother houses how the parents watched the game with the entire family.In the stadium, the parents, grandparents and children cheered for theirfavorite teams. When the season was almost finished and the final series began, thewhole country went crazy. Everybody was talking about “the game.”At night, every business—from bodegas to bars and discotheques—had thegame on television. It wasn’t only businesses that tried to attract people with thegame; many people also went to watch the game in the park, where there was a bigtelevision screen. The politicians tried to sway the people with a lot of commercialsand publicity because they wanted to be a senator, mayor or president.I liked the final series so much, especially when Las Águilas Cibaeñas, theEagles of the Cibao, were in the finals, because they were my favorite team. With 20championships, they are one of the most popular teams in the Dominican RepublicWinter League.During the season, for those three or four hours of each game, the peopleforgot all the problems they had, like no permanent electricity, political corruption,crime, drugs and rising gas prices.I have left the baseball-crazy Dominican Republic. I’m an American citizennow. But I am continuing the tradition.My son was born on November 17, 2010.I waited until November 30th to buy himhis first Yankees baseball cap. I will teachhim how to play, watch baseball gameswith him, and maybe he can become aPassing Down41AMBIORIX E. BARETThe whole countrywent crazy. EverybodyWAS talking about‘the game.’