This is now. It all started back in May, 2010. I was three years old and had yet to touch a bat. 

    My name is Alexander Murdough. I don’t think much or understand much. I'm in the yellow class of the Lincoln Nursery School, and my favorite part of the school day is naptime. During nap time, I usually whisper to my friend Olivia and then drift off for a few minutes. Today, Olivia isn't here so I lay on my cushioned matt and let my eyelids droop down over my eyes. I slip into the fantasy-like world of my dreams. A tall, white, stone castle sits on the river a couple hundred feet away. The sound of clashing swords draws my attention to the left; knights in white robes defending their drawbridge from the dark knights with red capes, menacingly blowing in the wind. Before they catch sight of me, I rapidly crawl away from the fight. I crawl and crawl until I hear nothing except the peaceful whistling of songbirds. I'm in a vast field. To my left I see hills, rolling gently across the landscape. To my right, there's a river rushing down from the surrounding white-capped mountains. Ahead of me, a wall of corn waits. 

   A mysterious, ghostly voice urges me towards a narrow gap in the wall, “go on, you belong over here,” it seemed to tell me. 

    Eventually, my curiosity got the better of me and I decided to go on an adventure through the looming stocks of corn. 

    After walking in circles for hours on hours, an opening appears fifty or so steps ahead. Without hesitation, I run towards the light. Stride after stride, I come closer and closer to the end of my time trapped in the tall, menacing, and dark stalks of corn. Soon enough, I’m moving so fast that I can't keep up with myself. I stumble. Trying to keep myself standing I pump my legs as fast as my small body can go; however, it isn’t enough. I crash down towards the hard, dusty earth like a falling elephant.

    Relieved to be back in the real world, and away from the dark knights and scary corn mazes of my dreams I sit up. Something isn't right though. My arms and legs still ache from my fall and I hear a sort of distant buzzing. Instead of being on my soft matt in the cozy, dark room, I’m in a soft bed of neatly cut grass. As I look around, I see the tall, looming, and scary wall of corn from my previous dream. Shivers instantly run down my spine.

    “What if I'm stuck in my dreams? Is that possible?” 

    Doubt and fear crept into my brain as I desperately looked around. There’s no way, mom and dad always said that dreams weren’t real and that there is no reason to be afraid of them, but here I am.

    A long way ahead, I see a slightly elevated circle of dirt surrounded by grass. Behind the grass is more dirt, and behind the dirt, more grass again. Weird, I don’t remember seeing anything like this, but it feels familiar in some way. Not knowing what to do, I sit and wait for something. 

    Then I hear a loud and clear voice. Not a mysterious or vague voice, but the sound of a real person. Not only that one loud voice but many other voices. It sounded as if they were cheering for something.

    Then that same loud, clear, and almost robotic voice speaks again, “struck him out! Down three now down to their last batter with the bases loaded, Alexander Murdough steps up to the plate. He’s one for three so far today with a single to right.”