Why Football is the World's Sport

So so so many people in the U.S. give soccer players a hard time. Soccer is the world's oldest sport. It's history and culture. How did American football and baseball become our country's favorites? Baseball players hardly run let alone move. Football players spend 3 hours on the ground on top of one another. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the unbelievable talent in the MLB and NFL and NHL and NBA. Those athletes dedicate their lives to training and performing under pressure. But the question I have to ask is--why doesn't soccer get the most attention in the U.S?

In our country soccer is mostly a youth sport. Everywhere else in the world it is the sport. Here's why I think that's so:

It's incredibly cheap to play soccer. All you need is to declare four inanimate objects goal posts and find something round enough to kick around. In Uganda, the kids rip old fabric and tie the pieces into knots over and over again until they have a soccer ball. You don't even really need shoes to play. It may be preferable, but guaranteed the majority of this world's soccer players go barefoot. Even in the professional world players only need a good pair of boots and a couple of steel frames.

It's the unified language of the world. While I was in Uganda, there was very few people that I could communicate with verbally. What was the best way I connected with the students? Playing soccer. Over the course of a few games we developed a great system of grunts amongst us that meant "pass it here," "go up," "put pressure," "I'm open," "good shot." Soccer is the only thing that is the same in every single country and understood equally all over the world.

It is an opportunity to teach. It teaches children at a young age to rely on teammates and to share the ball. It is a game that relies on constant strategy--the position and shape and angles of 10 men together. In Uganda, coaching soccer amongst teenagers is an opportunity to talk about HIV/AIDS. It's an opportunity to spread hope and perseverance in a community downtrodden by poverty and illness. It was even an opportunity for me to teach boys (and men) that girls can play soccer and can play it well! Soccer balls can even provide electricity to the most remote areas of the world! Now that's a science lesson. (Check out the Soccket @ http://unchartedplay.com/

It is larger than any celebrity, product or trend. If you need a way to reach a child in the third world--its with a soccer ball. Take a few minutes to kick that ball around with him and right away you become friends, without speaking the same language. Soccer promotes diversity and unity and community better than any Angelina Jolie. Coca-Cola's got it right by placing soccer in more than half of its commercials. Hold a soccerball up in the air and immediately you've got everybody's attention. 

It creates a unified world. Look at our professional soccer teams and you will find players from Gabon, Ireland, Japan, Argentina, Togo, Germany, Lithuania. Players from all walks of life, speaking many different tongues, unified and speaking the language of football. Working together, needing each other, to accomplish the same goal. It doesn't matter where in the world you come from because wherever you came from, there was football. Football fans sing and shout and wear team colors and love one another in solidarity. There is NO  other sport in the world (and this is fact) that has a greater, louder, more passionate audience than soccer. One tiny little ball is all it takes to bring the world's differences together.

Last year Juna Amagara connected with Norman, the Principal and Owner of Murole Prepatory School in Rubanda. They asked him what they could do to help the school thrive. Norman knew immediately: "The children wish for a football pitch."

Murole have no land suitable for the children to play during recess. Behind the school there was available space but it was covered in sharp rock and slate that the children would injure themselves on. It was clear that the hundreds of children at Murole were praying for the chance to play football.

And a soccer pitch they got!

Over 3,000 people were fed lunch at the Opening Day Ceremony. Over 3,000 people listened to speeches declaring the importance of education. Over 3,000 people from two different tribes forced to call the same land home held hands together in  unison and played a football match. Over 3,000 people shared the football boots happily as game after game was played on the new ground. Over 3,000 people's lives changed just a bit more for the better because of the game this world loves.

 

Charming, Clever, Capable and Captivating: Meet Caleb!

This is Caleb. Caleb is almost 18 years old and he is a JAM student in Kishanje. He is one of the most unique students in the Juna Amagara program, and not because of his Autism.

Caleb was the only student of the thousands I met in my whole trip who had a cognitive difference (with the exception of my buddy Timothy in Mbarara with Downs). Now I'm not sure if that is because less children where I visited had learning differences or they just never received the opportunity to attend school. In rural areas there is ignorance towards health differences and I can imagine in many places around the world these kids are never treated equally.

Caleb's story is quite the opposite. JAM could see the light behind Caleb's eyes and yearned to do whatever they could to ensure it didn't dim as Caleb grew older. Now almost an adult, JAM is still caring for Caleb and learning more and more about him each day:

He is caring. He held my hand and gave me many, many, many, many hugs. He worries for others and brings them gifts made from things he finds in the yard.

He is charming. His big brown eyes and even larger smile never lose their brightness. I never saw Caleb become visibly upset, even when a situation confused or challenged him.

He is creative. The first day I  met Caleb, Eliazar pointed out to me that he needed new shoes. We indeed found Caleb a bright red pair of Converse (There isn't a more perfect shoe to put on this boy's feet! He looked like a rockstar). What was amazing was that when we removed Caleb's way-too-small-toes-poking-out-from-the-tip shoes we saw that Caleb had fashioned himself homemade socks from scraps of fabric he must have found around the school. By doing so, Caleb's "socks" saved his feet from many blisters and sores as his shoes grew too small.

He is clever. Caleb has a hard time communicating with words. It is difficult for him to speak out loud so instead we spoke with gestures. I found this ironic that because we each knew different languages, we'd have to communicate this way anyways! Caleb found ways to express to me that he wanted to make a bracelet. Blow bubbles. Eat popcorn. Take off his shoes. I think I communicated with Caleb better than anybody else on the trip.

He is cared for. Because of Juna Amagara Caleb has had a wonderful life filled with warm meals and the love and support all children (and especially children with Autism) need in order to thrive and learn. Looking at Caleb you can see that he knows how special that is. His expression completely transforms an entire room when he locks eyes with somebody that he loves.

Caleb is the vision of Juna Amagara Ministries. Every child deserves a loving home. I recently read Katie Davis's memoir Kisses from Katie. My favorite bit from the whole book is the first sentence on the first page:

"I've noticed something about people who make a difference in the world: they hold the unshakable conviction that individuals are extremely important, that every life matters. They get excited over one smile. They are willing to feed one stomach, educate one mind, and treat one wound. They aren't determined to revolutionize the world all at once; they're satisfied with small changes."

It is those individuals--the ones who get excited about one smile, one giggle, one full belly--that change the world. They might not change the whole world, but they change the world for those people.

Chicago Fans!

I have come across A LOT of Chicago fans in the mountains of Southern Uganda. Most famously, Michael Jordan fans. But also plenty of Chicago Bears, White Sox, Fire and even some Cub fans. One day while we were waiting for our lunch at this beautiful cafe....

 ...I heard some giggling come from behind those bushes. You can't see in the photo but to the left of that red bush was a fishing dock. This was the spot where the village collected water, washed clothes, fished, tied up tree trunk canoes, etc. It was a popular spot to hang out and during the day it was bustling with the tiny bodies of children chasing tires down the road with sticks. 

I excused myself from the table and grabbed my frisbee from the van. When I walked up to the group of kids they all scattered away in opposite directions. One brave boy approached me curiously. I held up the red frisbee and gestured for him to take it. He held it in his hands and looked at me blankly. O right, stupid me. I spent the next few minutes teaching my friend how to throw the frisbee. 

In a few minutes I was surrounded by children again. These were children that I was meeting only briefly on the roadside--a pit stop on our way to Kishanje. They weren't in the Juna Amagara program. They spoke Luganda, not Rukiga (or English). It was easy to see that they were hungry and dirty--it was easier to see that they were adorable, happy, smilling toothy-grins. I spent the next two hours tossing the frisbees among the crowd and meeting a few friends face to face.

The girl in the Chicago Bears sweatshirt is the older sister to most of these kids in this photo. That means that she is responsible for them during the day--dodging trucks along the road, staying away from the water, finding food, bathing. That's a lot to ask of one 9 year old girl. She was a sweetheart with the softest voice and shy eyes. Too embarrassed to touch my bracelet I noticed her staring at it. Somewhere in Uganda a little girl is wearing a Chicago Bears sweatshirt and a J. Crew Sailor Knot bracelet.

(I also saw a lot of Green Bay fans too. Eck.)

The little boy in the bottom right corner of this photo has probably known that t-shirt his entire life. One of his older brothers or uncles or fathers might have worn it. And now he has worn it for years. The clothing that we donate does make a difference. Especially shoes and jackets.

This is Dickson. He is a prime example of JAM's success, graduating in a few months time. For you FXW Alumni folks, you already recognize his shirt. That jersey was my 8th grade basketball jersey. 

I remember when I was packing for my first trip to Uganda. My mom had so wonderfully organized trips to and from the dollar store with things for the Children's Home in Mbarara--toothbrushes, soap, wash cloths, Band-Aids, nail clippers, etc. We stuffed my extra suitcases with toys as well--stickers, beanie babies, glow sticks, nail polish, balloons, bubbles.

"You still have some space left." my mom said.

"I think that's enough. That's A LOT. The bag needs to be under 50 lbs doesn't it?"

"Here you can fit these too." My mom stuffed the last possible things that could fit into the bag---several old T-shirts (including my bball jersey) and soccer shorts we removed from my closet while spring cleaning. 

Sure enough, my bag was overweight. And sure enough, like always, my mom handled that situation real quick. After firmly explaining to the AA guy what was in my bag and why she let him know that it would be continuing on to fly to Uganda. (She's awesome)

 That bag did make its way to the Children's Home in Mbarara. The house mamas took it and divided up the supplies, toys and clothing appropriately. When I returned to Uganda five years later  in 2012 I visited Kishanje. And who did I see wandering around the school grounds in my basketball jersey? Dickson.

Five years later and 14 hours away from Mbarara we met again in another village and held hands while he told me about his success in school. Unbelievable.

 

These students are new to the Juna Amagara program. To reward them for their excellent marks in school we invited them to the JAM guest house for a special visit. On the visit we presented them with letters and photos from their sponsors back in America. Then each child was given a football jersey. After taking photos we played football in the yard and I painted the fingernails and toes of many girls and some boys.

Your donations DO make a difference! An exceptional one.

Omwana

A lot of friends have asked me what my favorite memories of Uganda are. I have come up with a quick list of my favorite experiences:

-that one time I was in an earthquake
-almost getting our van smashed by the hoof of an angry elephant
-playing monkey in the middle with a real live monkey
-slaughtering a cow with a machete
-diving from a 40 ft. tree into Lake Bunyoni
-learning Rukiga dance while 3,000 people pointed and laughed hysterically at me
-meeting Gilbert and visiting his home
-giving free mani/pedis to my little friends
-drinking buswhera, African moonshine
-proving to men and boys that women can play football

BUT. At the absolute top of my bucket list, the number one thing that I had to do before leaving Uganda was wearing a baby on my back. Ever since my first trip in 2007, I yearned to learn how to do the same. I kind of have a healthy obsession with all things baby. In the marketplace I bought two of the fabrics used to "back" a baby. I also bought an adorable baby mobile crafted from Ugandan beads, recycled metal charms from bottle caps and sewn elephants (not embarrassed). If you didn't know me, you'd assume I was expecting.

I wanted to hold every baby I saw but two weeks into my second trip I still hadn't found a mother I felt comfortable asking. I was shy of my lack of Rukiga-speaking abilities (many of JAM's American members have learned Rukiga and they amaze me--it is the world's most difficult language with absolutely no consistent grammar and punctuation rules).

One day while we were helping at a women's clinic, Eliazar decided it was time for me to hold a baby. I hadn't shut up about it for days and he was determined to help. What was(n't) funny was that he expected me to approach the women all on my own and just sit back and watch. 

Scared that I might frighten the women or embarrass myself, I approached them where they were talking. I waved and smiled and they starred back. I pointed to the baby and held out my hands, gesturing that I would like to hold him. The mama's response went from complete confusion to horrific fear to cackling laughter in the matter of seconds.

Scared of pasty white skin

The baby was scared of me to say the least. One look at my translucent body and he let out a shrilling cry. My heart stopped. These women are going to be upset that I scared their babies! Instead they responded with a roar of howling laughter. I tried to give the baby back but the mama put her hand out and said "No. You." She wanted me to keep holding him! The women loved it.

After a few minutes Eliazar explained to the women that I dreamed of wearing a baby on my back and would they teach me? Certainly enough, they were all eager.

The center of village gossip for the next year.

Omwana

Look at that smile. That might be my best smile ever. The kindness and acceptance I was surrounded by made my heart grow even larger for those mothers. I will carry all of my kids this way and thank them forever for teaching me how. For some reason now, however "practical," strollers just seem absurd.