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| View from the court |
As many of you may know, I love to play basketball. It is something that I believe I cannot live without. Now that may be a bit dramatic, but it is definitely something I never want to live without. Watching it is great, but I love to play it. When we visited Niterói two years ago, I had to confirm not only that there would be a group of guys to play basketball with, but also that the group was fun. Obviously, the decision to come to Brazil did not hinge on basketball, but it certainly helped!
I love the group of guys I get to play b-ball with every Tuesday night. I have made some really good relationships with some of the guys and have invited many of them to "youth" events and other church events. And though only a few of them have taken me up on those invites, I will keep inviting them and only God knows what may come from these friendships. It is group of guys that I can joke with, discuss our mission and work here with and I always try to get into their lives as well. Some are married, so it is easy to ask how their wives are. Some are still in school, so I can always ask how school is going and talk about that with them. Some recently have had kids, which is obviously an exciting time for them. So I love to ask about that and see their eyes light up. It isn't just basketball on Tuesday nights for me. I see it as much more!
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| Just some of the guys... |
However, March and April are often rainy months here in Rio. It is an outdoor court and so rain pretty much ruins Tuesday nights of basketball. And today it is raining yet again...so it will be one more Tuesday night without basketball, and getting together with some of my friends, for me. I think we have played like 2 times in the last month and a half. Sad times...I know! Brazil needs the rain (like seemingly the rest of the world), however, I only wish it would take a break on Tuesday nights!
Kelly "Mão Quente (Hot Hand)" Tomasi
