Wednesday May 27, 2015

5/17/15

Today was relatively similar to the previous day. We woke up, ate breakfast, and headed to MICS to run the kids through another day of clinics. However, before the clinics began, a few of the girls added a little variety to the school's morning chapel. This variety came in the form of a song that was taught to a few of the kids yesterday during our evening games. The song was a nuanced version of Jesus Loves Me, which is often sung by the team in the locker room before games. It was really great to see a song we love and enjoy singing being shared with our new friends in Zambia. Now, while we're worshipping The Lord with that song, we can always think about these moments in Zambia and how they are possibly still singing it here as well.

After chapel ended, we went to the soccer field to coach the clinics. Here, we played a number of fun soccer games and let the kids showcase their talents. They seemed to really love the drills we ran, and their excitement helped energize the team. Some of us also got the opportunity to spend some time with these two boys who were not physically able to participate in the clinics. Their names were Brian and Prince, and they helped give us an insight as to what the school was like and what their favorite things to do were. The boys were very sweet and were really easy to talk to. Even though I know they would love to be out running around with their friends, their cheerful attitudes were really something to admire.

Running through drills with the kids...Skylar is the sight supervisor.

Some of the girls spending time with Prince. 

After the clinic sessions ended, we headed back to the dorm area. From here, we got lunch, had a quick workout session with Reg as our instructor, and relaxed for a short while. When it was time for our evening session to begin, a few groups formed and went their separate ways. One group went to the hospital, one helped coach the local girls team, another stayed at the rec center, and my group went and played basketball with the local girls team. It was a really neat experience to meet them all because last summer, these girls were all girls were all coached by our good friend from Messiah, Emily Martz. This was unique because we were able to connect with these girls in a way that didn't involve soccer. It also helped reveal how much tougher those 15 and 16 year olds were than us. It is safe to say they could out-rebound us in their sleep, and did I mention most were wearing dresses? Fortunately for us, shooting was their downfall. It was funny for us because every missed shot was followed by the word "sheet," which is closely related to a certain American word we all know...Apparently, the Zambian version of this word means "shoot" though:) There were two subs on our team, so when we weren't playing we were able to chat with the girls. This was a lot of fun because we were able to learn that we had a lot in common with them. They liked Beyonce, cartoons, and all had boyfriends. The only thing we didn't have in common were the boyfriends. Playing basketball and hanging out with these girls was definitely one of the best experiences I've had on this trip so far.

Coach Frey leading the girls through a practice. 

Kate reading to some of the kids at the rec center. 

Once the basketball game and the other activities ended, we were able to head back to the dorms to get cleaned up for another amazing dinner. This was followed by a team discussion about a book we had all just finished reading called To Chase A Dream. This book is about a former Indiana University soccer player who recounts his collegiate soccer experience. It is always interesting to hear about the different take-aways everyone has from this book because I know it resonated with all of us. Summerly mentioned a quote from the book that really encapsulates the message behind the story. This quote is: "A dream chased vigorously is a success, no matter the outcome." I'm not sure if those are the exact words from the book, but it gives everyone the general idea and certainly something to think about when we think about the dream or dreams we're chasing in life.

Love, 

MWS (Kyele)