Bowling is life at its most immediate – you fling a ball and the pins fall down, sometimes. And I also wanted to show Sam that the holy goes on, no matter how many balls you fling at it – Bird by Bird, by Anne Lamott
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At the Hope Bowl fundraiser, the woman on the bowling lane next to me stands undaunted. The scoreboard above indicates her name is “A.” Petite, she is in her early 30s and is dressed in black t-shirt and jeans. Her face reads determination as she steps toward the pins. After two steps she flings the ball in a sidewinder motion.
Her body leans left as the ball slides then spins left toward the gutter. Just inches from the pin the ball drops into the gutter. Still leaning she turns and returns to her teammates and her face reads resignation and a slight smile. Teammates slump with her and offer sympathetic high fives.
Through 6 frames “A” has knocked down one 1 pin. She looks up at the scoreboard, 0-0-0-0-1-0.
In the tenth and final frame, “A” flings her first ball, she leans left as the ball spins left - 3 pins fly and her teammates cheer. With a fist pump, she turns and beams, her best roll yet.
On her second roll, incredibly, the ball rolls down the middle of the lane. “A” stands straight, then she is on her bobbing on her toes. Her teammates lean forward, raise their hands, and then their arms…
The ball creates a jumble of ricocheting and rolling pins until none are standing. Her arms above her head, “A” jumps, turns a 180, and races toward her teammates! They run to her and all are bobbing in a joyous huddle!
In bowling, if all 10 pins are knocked down after the second roll it is called a spare. And, if you get a spare in the 10th frame, you get to roll again.
Thank you to Hopeworks for sparing lives and giving them a chance to roll again. Hope Bowl is an annual fundraiser for the benefit of Hopeworks of Howard County - a non-profit agency providing services to women, men, and children impacted by sexual assault and domestic violence.
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