It's OK to Meet Your Heroes
People often warn you to never meet your heroes because you'll likely be disappointed. As a general rule, it probably works. Heroes tend to be famous and with fame and fortune, a healthy detachment from reality is a strong possibility. Despite this making intuitive sense, I've always been a bit skeptical. Maybe because the hero I've looked up to more than any other since I was a kid has the reputation for being as down-to-earth as they come. I've written before about how much Don Mattingly meant to me growing up. So much so, that recently I made a promise to myself that if the opportunity to meet him ever arises, I should do it at any cost. Well, I stumbled upon that opportunity by way of a massive Yankee autograph show that happened in North Jersey earlier this month. As a person who has never paid for an autograph before, the price seemed high, but if that's what it took to meet Donnie, so be it. As my excitement grew, I planned on accomplishing two things with ...