I've often heard you can't go back again. However, on my way to E 42nd Street in Des Moines I drove past ranch home after ranch home with the same style of backyards that my brothers and I often played our pickup games on in the suburbs of Cincinnati.

E 42nd Street was a middle class neighborhood that put me back in time and these kids were kids I had much in common - rough, loud, full of love, full of emotion, and certainly never a dull moment.

Cathryn Lang waited for me at 7:30 in the morning with her cart knowing I'd be carrying props and signed books. We headed quickly to Hoyt Middle School through a maze of hallways. Emily Arnold who was instrumental in getting all sixth-graders a copy of my book followed along with us. Double doors opened to a spacious auditorium. The stage had been prepared for my speech and the microphone was already humming.

The students piled in and we enjoyed a game of shadow baseball with much laughter in between. What even caused me to pause was the silence and attention I received talking about Erin and her baseball Hall of Fame success. I've found during this book tour that I've been able to reach the older students by explaining Erin's hardships while also letting them know how my daughter was able to push through in living out her dream. Students don't want sugar-coated, water-downed stories; students today want real, genuine stories with emotional meaning. With the age of the IPOD and MP3 player, it's nice to know that a good, old-fashoned success story is still of interest to middle school students.

After a thunderous applause I stood there in awe and felt so appreciative. But there wasn't time to bask in the glory, because I had to speak to the elementary students next. I met Mr. Lord, Brubaker's school principal, and he'd dawned his Chicago White Sox uniform with pride. He ushered students in and out of the cafeteria/stage room with the precision of a New York City policeman directing traffic.

I called on several volunteers to discuss their dreams and one bright student said, "I am going to hold the world record for yo-yoing ten yo-yos all at once on my ten fingers. The room fell silent when I talked about Creeper and his magic glass eye, which stole the show. I noticed several students closing their eyes to collect their fears.

I spoke to the gifted students at 11:00 a.m. and I explained to them through example how to create detailed, colorful sentences. We had fun partnering in teams. I am hopeful that several of these talented writers enter the Iowa writing contest because I saw some promising writers in the bunch.

Near the end of school day, I was asked to get more books out of my car and I heard over and over again, "Mom! I just got to have Dr. Mullen's book!"

I was then mugged by a crowd of enthusiastic students waiting for the bus. It was then I recalled what it was like living in the moment through these children's eyes.

They say you can never go back. Not true! My time to shine happened at Hoyt & Brubaker.

Thank you.