WASHINGTON, D.C., USA — Before Game 5 of the World Series at Nationals Park, Kayla and Ricky Collazo felt it.
Every sign, every meeting, every moment near our country’s great landmarks seemed to say winning was meant to be.
“It’s overwhelming, literally, in like every way,” Kayla Collazo said. “Just being here, I’m alive and beating it. I can’t even put it into words.”
Breast cancer and six months of chemotherapy kept the Houston mom of two boys home or in hospitals but hardly held her down.
“Sometimes you (have to) pull from savings a little bit to make things happen,” she said.
Just weeks before Kayla Collazo is scheduled to have double mastectomy surgery, she and her husband skipped town for a pick-me-up: tickets to all three World Series games in Washington, D.C.
“It’s (going to) help push her through anything,” Ricky Collazo said. “She’s an incredible woman, definitely the strongest woman I know, and very relentless. Just a powerhouse.”
After seeing Houston win Game 3, Game 4’s biggest moment landed close enough for Ricky to grab Alex Bregman’s grand slam souvenir. Almost.
“I pulled out my phone (because) I knew some magic was about to happen,” Kayla Collazo said.
“I was so caught up in the moment, I failed to realize the ball was 15 feet away from me,” Ricky Collazo said. “I should have went after it.”
“He should have went after it a little harder,” Kayla Collazo added.
The Nationals fan who did get the ball refused to sell. However, he did allow Kayla Collazo to take a photo with the ball.
Plenty of other Astros fans in the stadium did score souvenirs. What the Collazos took home, though, feels bigger than Texas.
“A year ago today, I wouldn’t think I would have cancer and knowing that I’m beating it and I’m experiencing something that we’re experiencing something together that few people get to do," Kayla Collazo said. “What (the Astros) have is just magic. They’re magic, and I feel good about it.”
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