Collins, Ireland’s Ambassador to the United States, was visiting Colorado business and educational institutions to foster cultural and economic ties; good enough. His engaging personality and friendly manner make him easy to spend time with, no doubt qualities that aided his successful negotiations during the 2001-2007 Northern Ireland Peace Process. I’d welcome another visit!

I asked a twelve-year-old fan why he loves Opening Day at Coors Field so much and got an interesting response that tantalized the senses. His face lit up when he said the stadium floor feels clean under his feet, it squeaks. The smell of Kettle Corn wafts through the air. He loves the sound of a bat smacking a ball. The Lemonade Slushy tastes so good he doesn’t mind getting “froze head.” And most of all, he loves seeing his beloved Colorado Rockies take the field and wave to the fans.

His sensory-based experiences startled me. Then I smiled, thinking about my own childhood memories of Tiger Stadium. It truly is a great sport, America’s Pastime.

Action shots are exciting and they sell well in the editorial world, but some of the most interesting things happen off the field. I always try to follow what’s going on in the dugout; the teams are fun to watch when they’re observing the game. Sometimes things are intense and everyone’s gaze is fixed on one place. At other times, they kid around and play practical jokes like little leaguers. It all makes for a great time in the ballpark!

In hurling and camogie, the similar female sport, a leather ball or sliotar (pronounced slith-her), much like a baseball with raised seams, is carried and hit with an ash paddle called the hurley. Gaelic football is similar to Australian Rules football but uses a round ball that is slightly smaller and harder than a soccer ball. These fast-moving sports are played by teams of fifteen on what resembles a soccer field with upright posts above the netted area. Players score a point for putting the ball above the bar between the uprights or three points for getting it into the net.

These images are from the 2006 North American Championships held in Philadelphia. All the mud? Hurricane Ernesto was nearby.

I research and prepare the logistics for who I’m going to cover on what stage beforehand, but my plans always change on the fly as I respond to the “pulse of the festival.” Sometimes a relatively unknown act generates “buzz” and I end up shifting gears to see what’s up. At other times, I make a schedule change to accompany another journalist that I like working with on an adventure.

In the end, I’ve walked dozens of miles across the festival fields, heard great music, edited thousands of images and transmitted hundreds of them out to clients on deadline via the wire service. I couldn’t ask for more fun in a career!

I have a vivid recollection of the moment it came. Some things get shoved into memory and they’re there to stay. I was captioning photos in my office when an editor that I work with at ZUMA Press called asking, “How’d you like to cover the Dalai Llama’s visit?” After a moment’s pause to gather my composure, I shouted, “Are you crazy? (that’s the composed me) Of course I do!”  Needless to say, I got the assignment.

As it happens, the Dalai Llama was traveling to Denver to participate in the Peace Jam with nine other Nobel Peace Prize Laureates and more than 3,000 youth from 31 countries. He would then travel to the Shambhala Mountain Center outside of Red Feather Lakes to bless The Great Stupa of Dharmakaya. It’s the largest Buddhist monument in the United States and holds the cremated skull of Vidyadhara Chšgyam Trungpa Rinpoche, the founder of more than 150 meditation centers worldwide.

I ended up spending three days with the Dalai Lama and a slew of Secret Service Agents; a pretty amazing time!