SWITCHED, BUT STILL LOYAL

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I remember my friends always saying that "guys who do not play football are princesses". It was a popular banter line amongst us against our fellow guys who preferred other sports to football, especially sports and games that did not really require physical stamina.

On one of the days while playing with some of my friends by the pitch side, just having fun while another match was going on, my dad walked up to me and shouted

"this is for the mediocre players, the real players are on the pitch".

I was sad and felt bad because it was my team playing, but I wasn't chosen to play based on the coach's evaluation.

Football, a global sport loved and played by millions all over the world. A game of wit, intelligence and physicality, I fell in love with it because there wasn't much of a choice available where I'm from. Football has always been our number one sport and our favorite till date. Football gifts are even some of the best gifts parents or relatives could give their young ones.

From a tender age, my rubber balls became my treasure trove and my mom my priced treasure hunter. I woke with it, slept with it, and only left it alone when I went to school. It didn't just become my best friend, but it also fetched me many friends and admirers that made me feel like the prince of the game. I had the liberty to choose who can play, who can be in my team, who will act as the keeper and whatever I did was excused.

Gradually the football field became my de facto home based partly on the fact that my house bordered it, in fact I literally grew up on it. With time my skills set and abilities were refined and I became one of the prized jewels of the locality, one of the guys everyone wants to have in their team if they want to win any match.

The tournaments came quick and fast, and it gave me ample opportunities to showcase my skills learnt from the professionals on television. With every skill successfully executed in a match came new layers of dreams. I believed that I had all it takes to have my name on the national team jersey with millions watching me all over the world and screaming my name with parents naming their children after me wishing they turn out like me.

The huge dreams and my dad's words were the adrenaline that I needed to regain my spot in the team and in the following match, I scored a goal and made sure that I rubbed it in his face when I got home. "your son is a legend" I screamed in his face. It was a fulfilling spirit, the energy, the frenzy, the contact, the emotions, the pace, the passion, they were the emotions that propelled my love for football.

Then came graduation from high school and the realities of life. Having to work till late hours meant I started sharing less and less time with my love, we spoke sparingly - only on weekends. The lack of communication meant a lull grew between us and gradually my mind shifted to exploring my dad's library.

In a matter of months my love for round rubber and leather was replaced by an insatiable thirst for the wisdom of rectangular processed wood filled with ink. In time, 400 pages could be devoured in days, it seemed like an obsession and before I knew it, the sweet scent of paper became my favorite attraction while round leather became a side kick that I only saw at weekends.

And since then my life has taken the route of 'feed the brain daily, and the body weekly'. From the waltzing through the green grass to the flipping through worn brown pages, these two still remain my go to place for relaxation and cooling off. The ancient wisdom of books for knowledge, wisdom and brain feeding.

The football and its adrenaline, passion and emotions for the release of steam and maintaining optimum health while staying fit for the hustles and bustles of life. They have kept me on my feet both physically and otherwise and I hope our love and understanding remain forever.

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