"Will you give us your best?"

So yesterday I had the girls group for training. It was by far the biggest group we've had in the past 3 days. There were probably 60 girls out for training. They were very raw talent wise, but there were probably 6 girls taller than me, and a couple were really quick. It was pretty incredible to see their size compared to the size of the boys. I really dont have any boys with any size, but the girls are huge!

Anyway... at the end of practice was my introduction, because the other coach who could speak english didnt come until after practice. While I was being introduced, the girls began to ask questions. You know how that goes... "how old are you"..."did you play in the NBA?"... "Do you like Kobe Bryant?" but then I got a great question. One girl raised her hand and said, "will you give us your best?"

That really hit me. I have never been asked that before. even though I have played basketball and coached basketball I have never been asked "will you give your best?"I feel like my best was always either demanded or implied. But also how do you answer that question as a coach?

I could give a simple answer which of course is yes, but is that sufficient? How many times have these kids been told that they would be given someone's best only to be let down, I did not know. I felt like she was asking me a question to gauge my intent for being here in Goma. Was I here for the same purposes as a lot of NGO's, to make great money, but also be doing a job that at the end of the day i can feel good because I did good for others. Was I here because I had an irrational expectation to think that I can really change the way things were in Goma? Was I here because I felt sorry for the children? The answer to most of these questions going through my head are partially true (except the money thing). Yes I want to do good, and it makes me feel good watching others improve and succeed, and yes I feel sorry for the kids of Africa. All those things are easy though. I am here to give them my best, and test out what my best is.

I answered them by saying, "I am here to give you my best, but I expect your best in return. I love basketball and if you give your best everyday then you will understand why I love it so much and you will have the same love for it as me. I promise to give you my best as long as you are giving me your best."

I dont know if this was the best answer, but it is the one I gave. Almost exactly in those words. I cannot promise that they will become great players. I cannot promise that we will even win a game in the tournaments, but I can promise that I will be prepared and give my best every second that I am with them, but only if they give me that in return. I hope that my answer gave them hope that I can help them achieve whatever they want, and that it gave them high expectations of me because I have high expectations of them. I just thought that it was a great question, and I still do not know exactly how to answer that perfectly. If I was asked that question in any circumstance I don't know how to answer it, but I gave it my best shot.

Promo Juenes Basket

Promo Juenes Basket (PJB)

            So today is the third day I will be with kids training. Monday I had the teenage boys, Tuesday I had the little boys and today I will have girls of all ages. It is very interesting to see how this whole PJB system is working out. For those of you that don’t know I will use this blog post to introduce a little bit about what PJB is.

            PJB was an initiative started about 5 years ago by a man named Dario Merlo Kasuku and some of his colleagues. Their goal was to make the game of basketball available to the kids of Congo, specifically in the Eastern Province and Goma. In the town there are right now only two functional basketball courts, and very limited access to basketball equipment. When there is equipment available it is very expensive (Second hand Basketballs go for close to 50$). So PJB’s aim was to make basketball available to the children of Goma.

            Moreover though PJB was developed to teach the children of Goma the important characteristics of life that can be developed through basketball. Basketball can be used as a source of entertainment, but it is also a very powerful platform to teach children good character. PJB aims to construct a firm platform to raise the children (many of whom are street kids with not even enough money to pay their school fees) so that the children may have a hope for the future.

            Right now PJB is in somewhat of a transition period. For the first five years the program ran well, but remained consistent. Right now the coaches and board are looking forward to a future that will hopefully see PJB develop from a strictly volunteer organization into a professional organization. This would involve having an organized program that is equipped for a large number of players, and having coaches that would receive a salary allowing them to comfortably support their families. In developing PJB as a professional organization this could create job opportunities within the community and foster a growth in the sport of basketball through the Kivu province and hopefully throughout all of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

            Some things that we are looking forward to is new ventures with sponsors, the development of a strong and organized training program for the kids, and within the coming month the construction of a brand new basketball court. This new court will be great, as it will have six baskets, which will be 150% more hoops that are available in Goma. Construction of the court will hopefully begin within the next month, the problems we are facing though are where we will be able to construct the court because there are problems with the land we had and the government not wanting us to use it. After this court is constructed we will be able to prepare for the competitions in January.

            So that’s a quick overview of the program. Yesterday I tried to teach the coaches and players so fun defensive line things so below I will attach a video to see how things go.... so the video is not uploading because the internet is too slow. It may be a week or so until I can figure out how to put video on... Stay Tuned

Arriving in Kigali

This is a post i started writing when I got in town, but i never got the chance to finish it or post it. It has very little information, but I am really trying to settle in and figure out my schedule so I can start updating everyone better. I am doing great though. Today I start my second day of training with the kids. I have the 8-12 year olds today so wish me luck!  anyway... here were my thoughts the night I arrived in Kigali:

Tonight I arrived at Kigali international airport about 20 minutes late. I exited the baggage claim area and spotted a man with headphones on bumpin R Kelly with a sign that said “Welcome Coach Matt PJB Goma”. From the second I walked through the doors I was greeted and treated like a welcome member of the PJB family. We went to the taxi and Dario, the organizer of the program, gave me a call welcoming me and expressing his excitement of having me. The welcome was awesome.

One thing that caught me off guard was that I landed at about 7:00 PM and it was already pitch dark outside, and very pleasant temperatures. It was a very nice 24 degrees with a clear night sky above us. We had a nice 30 minute drive to our small hotel room. Then we went for a nice walk. Kigali has similar features to Seoul because it is mountainous. Our hotel is at the bottom of a hill, and at the top of the hill is the business center of the city, so we took a nice 2 mile walk up the mountain and grabbed some waters and had a tea while watching some football (soccer). The excitement that Kadi expressed is pumping me up. I am excited to go and see the smiles on all the players faces.

Me and Kadi had great conversations about basketball and the goals that we have for the year. We will have a great opportunity to develop many kid’s skills and hopefully help PJB grow into a famous African basketball academy. For now I am just excited to get to Goma and settle in. Apparently Kadi tells me that by November I will be fluent in French and will be very good at Swahili. I am very nervous about that part.  Anyway… I am super tired, but very excited to be in Africa. I cannot stop thinking about all of the people I miss, but I know this is where I am supposed to be. 

On My Way to My Dreams

I’m sitting on a plane right now bound for my dream. Destination Africa. After a packed but very quick puddle hop across the Atlantic, I find myself on an unpopulated airplane from Brussels to Kigali. The plane is half full mostly occupied by African businessmen and earthy NGO-looking types. I stick out standing in the plane isle with a plastic bag holding about 5 pairs of shoes and some books that would have cost me an extra $200 in overweight baggage. I have a back corner window seat with an empty seat next to me. Currently I am staring out towards the mountains of somewhere in southern Europe… maybe northern Italy. The high peaks give way to the vivid blue of the Mediterranean Sea. There is no more beautiful water than the Mediterranean. Lupe is in my ears inspiring me to write about the liberated feeling that has overcome me in the past couple weeks. I have the most amazing life. I was blessed with the most beautiful family in the world. Even though the five of us are spread out in four different countries on three different continents, I feel closer than ever to them. The past months have taken me for an emotional roller coaster. Starting from the exciting weddings, to the knowledge gained at Wootten Camps, to the hectic and sad days of packing and saying bye to my parents and brother, to the tedious days of life guarding and packing myself, and finally the past two weeks I was able to spend the best 15 days of the last four years with the most gorgeous girl in the world. What a ride! Now it comes to a conclusion with me beginning the most important and exciting stage of the journey of life: real life.

            I have been asked what I will be doing and what my expectations are. I just give everyone the very small bit of information that I actually know about who I will be working for, and say that my only expectations are to teach the game I love, to have the time of my life, and to find myself. That is what real life is: you have to do what you love, always be happy, and always search and learn to improve yourself. I live the most incredible life!

Food For Thought:

“The successful capitalist is successful because he has no love in his heart… he has only the love of success. He devotes himself to work work work instead of to a woman he loved with all his soul. He attempts to fill the hollow in his heart with the accumulation of wealth and what it buys, whether things or power or both; but wealth, things and power fill it only for the moment, as water does the belly of a hungry man. The heart is empty once again and its cravings drive him to acquire more, yet he is never gratified… He soon learned that for the successful capitalist, there is no such thing as enough.”- Fitzhugh Martin

- I will always strive for better but I will also be grateful and satisfied with joy and happiness. I will always have clear vision towards the future and I will live with unconditional love in my heart. If I do this I cannot lose.

Apeing

  Planking is dead. Now Showing: The rise of the planet of Aping.... 

 How to ape: 

1.) must be on all fours- hands and knees.

 2.) Arms must be locked and straight. Fists are to be made with the hands

3.) Head must be facing forward with head, neck and back alignment.

4.) Back must be erect with your rump sticking out.

Bonus: You may add stunts to your ape if wanted.

P.S. Girlfriends are encouraged to Ape

                                        

Eli Fat Mat

I have currently been awake for the past 38 hours... (Took about a 45 min. nap on the train, but whos counting) I spent the weekend in Chicago. At one point I hit up my secret spot where I like to go down on the lake. Its got the best veiw of the Chicago sky line. My sister actually is the first person to take me there. I spent a good deal of time there this weekend though looking out on to the city. Chicago has the most beautiful skyline in the world! I cant even imagine a tragic event like that which happened 10 years ago today happening to this city, this skyline, these great people. 

early this morning I was reading my book (Acts of Faith right now... great book!) and I came across an Arabic proverb. It is Eli Fat Mat, which basically to my understanding means something along the lines of "the past is dead". On a day like today where the cop filled streets and the countless American flags sat still for a moment of silence in the waking hours of this Sunday morning, I sat on an almost completely empty El Train thinking Eli Fat Mat.

The past is dead, but it is never forgotten. Though our present realities lead us towards new goals, new hieghts, and new ideas these present realities quickly become past experiences and they die off, but we must never forget these experiences. It is the past that defines who we are. 

As a global community we have moved on from 9/11, but we never for one second forget it. We let the fear, the hurt, the sadness, and the hopelessness of an incomprehensibly disgusting act of hatred and terror die to make way for the love, compassion, faith, and unity which keeps up moving forward into a better future. 

Never in my heart will I forget going to sleep at night hearing that a plane may have just struck the world trade center to wake up to the horrific images of the two towers collapsing, but I must let all the feelings that accompanied that experience die. I must move from my past and into my future. I will never be the same, America will never be the same, and the world will never be the same because of what happened on September 11, 2001. God Bless everyone who had a family member or loved one die in the incidents of the attack. 

We must never forget...

They Call me Coach Video

My brother is going to be a brilliant young filmmaker. I am proud to be the subject of one of his first peices. For those of you that havent seen it, here is the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8AnGdAEuvA

My First Post

So I am sitting at home in my empty house. My brother is in Rome, my sister and brother in law are in Shanghai, and my parents are in Ankara. Its amazing how much you get to thinking when you are on your own. I have done a lot of searching lately. Looking for good books, good music, good movies (documentaries...). I've had a lot of great food, because of my family, but thats another story. Let me just say that I had a fridge full of food at the beginning of the week that I thought would be my food for the week, but it is just as full now as it was on Tuesday. My family is crazy, but the best... Anyway, my belly has been full with food, but my mind has also been filled with thought. Driving around today I had my Ipod blasting all day as usual and I ran across some good stuff. Let Brother Ali serve you a plate of food for thought:

"Something spiritual happen when them hands get to clappin
Can you tell me, what language do you laugh in?
The human reaction of smiles and cries
What language are the tears when they're fallin from your eyes?
You've probably seen the sunrise hundreds of times
But let a painter paint it or a poet describe
The very moment where heaven and Earth might collide
And God let the breath of life come outside
Uh, Satan doubted it, angels bowed to it
I'm so beautifully human and I'm proud of it
Soul of a soldier, heart of a scholar
I wrote this poem with the blood of a martyr
Imam Mohammed might pound on the podium
Popmaster Fabel work it out on the linoleum
Chappelle bust funnies, Mos Def bust rhymes
Muhammad Ali is the greatest of all time"

I am defined by my life and the way I live it. I want to be proud of being who I am.

"I said the good Lord made me what I am and I play this game for keeps
Got to use what I have to get what I want, all the dreamer got is his dream
And the good Lord made me what I am and I play the hand I'm dealt
Said sometimes the hardest thing to be in this world is just yourself"