Nate
You'll Never Walk Alone
Haha, the title is to ensure that everyone comes, you see? Genius!
Yesterday, my friend Ganesh rang me up, and asked for me to come to his house for the first time. He wanted me to help him film our major history project due in June, and of course I was more than happy to go. He said that his six Indian friends would also be there. After filming it, the idea was to go to the nets and play some quality cricket. Pretty cool.
My thoughts before the day were mainly of worry, of how I would get on with these people I had never met. I prayed to God that I would get on with them. I`m not trying to sound racist by any means, but I was not sure how I would fit in, because of culture clash or whatnot. Which, in hindsight, seems a bit stupid considering, for whatever reasons, that I do seem to get on well with Indian people in particular. There are four of them in our school 'group' of eight.
I arrived there at 10:30, thirty minutes late. I had a lot of trouble finding the house so I called Ganesh. He said he was at his friend`s house, two minutes down the road. I got there and walked in the door. It was a 'typical' Indian household, which I have gotten used to during many visits to my Indian friend`s places.
I was greeted by the seven of them with a gruff 'hey'. They were in the middle of studying Physics, a subject on which I knew/know nothing about. The time then was 10:35. I stood standing at the same doorway till 12:00, with no-one speaking to me besides Ganesh. I`m not angry at them for this, as it is as hard for a new person to talk to a group, as it is for a group to talk to a new person.
At 12:00, we shot the video, which took only 45 minutes. During that time, I finally had a chance to talk, mostly about cricket. The video had some comic elements to it, which enabled us to have a laugh about a few things. So, by about 12:45 I had sort of connected with these people, but not at a very high level.
There was then discussion as to what to do next. The popular opinion was 'Street Cricket', which was more than fine by me. Walking up to this deserted street (in which TWO CARS passed through it in the whole 210 minutes we were playing!), through listening to them talk, I heard that they had played every single day of the holidays. My group of friends all live reasonably far away, and some of them would rather eat rubbish whilst playing the latest shooter at an Internet cafe.
While we were setting up the 'field' (putting carpet over drains, and scooters on the carpet so it wouldn`t blow away and putting a marker for the boundary rope and chairs for wickets) they were all talking about what they bowl, how they bat, etc. And then asked me what I did. The subject of cricket had already proved an ice-breaker, and further proved to be one.
The rest (as the classics say) was a dream. I can`t remember EVER enjoying a game (or some games) of cricket so much.
We played two 'Test matches' and a 'One-dayer'. One of the best things was, that everyone was about equal talent. Of course, some people were better than others. But that didn`t stop the perhaps 'not-as-good' people having their moments.
I`m not trying to be up myself here: There was an incident when I was bowling to Nitesh. I was bowling reasonably paced full balls, and I was sure I could get him out, 'knowing' I was better. The first three he played and missed. The next three were all out-side edges that raced for four! And I enjoyed it! I take my cricket way too seriously sometimes, and I think normally, I would have mouthed off or the like. But after each four he hit, everyone laughed, and I walked back to my mark, light in step.
A key thing to mention, is that it was a 30+ degree day! Cricket can be tiring at the best of times, so an unseasonably warm day can really spoil a game. But it was awesome. Awesome for so many reasons.
After the games, it was 4:00, and we headed to the shops for a late lunch. It was while walking to them, I realised what exactly had happened! Only hours ago, I was feeling so uncomfortable, that I had contemplated making a lame excuse and heading home. And now, I was laughing and joking with these guys like we had been best buddies since birth!
I`m going on an awesome youth camp this weekend called Kyckstart, and bar that, that day of cricket will be the best thing I do all holidays.
Why have I bothered posting this? The joy of cricket! God has given me, given us, a wonderful gift that is this game. It turned complete strangers into friends. Something so simple, had given us a connection I seriously doubt would have been otherwise possible.
I said before, that this series if Cricket games were awesome for so many reasons. And there were many reasons. But a main one must have been that we could all communicate in a truly unique language. The language of cricket!
Yesterday, my friend Ganesh rang me up, and asked for me to come to his house for the first time. He wanted me to help him film our major history project due in June, and of course I was more than happy to go. He said that his six Indian friends would also be there. After filming it, the idea was to go to the nets and play some quality cricket. Pretty cool.
My thoughts before the day were mainly of worry, of how I would get on with these people I had never met. I prayed to God that I would get on with them. I`m not trying to sound racist by any means, but I was not sure how I would fit in, because of culture clash or whatnot. Which, in hindsight, seems a bit stupid considering, for whatever reasons, that I do seem to get on well with Indian people in particular. There are four of them in our school 'group' of eight.
I arrived there at 10:30, thirty minutes late. I had a lot of trouble finding the house so I called Ganesh. He said he was at his friend`s house, two minutes down the road. I got there and walked in the door. It was a 'typical' Indian household, which I have gotten used to during many visits to my Indian friend`s places.
I was greeted by the seven of them with a gruff 'hey'. They were in the middle of studying Physics, a subject on which I knew/know nothing about. The time then was 10:35. I stood standing at the same doorway till 12:00, with no-one speaking to me besides Ganesh. I`m not angry at them for this, as it is as hard for a new person to talk to a group, as it is for a group to talk to a new person.
At 12:00, we shot the video, which took only 45 minutes. During that time, I finally had a chance to talk, mostly about cricket. The video had some comic elements to it, which enabled us to have a laugh about a few things. So, by about 12:45 I had sort of connected with these people, but not at a very high level.
There was then discussion as to what to do next. The popular opinion was 'Street Cricket', which was more than fine by me. Walking up to this deserted street (in which TWO CARS passed through it in the whole 210 minutes we were playing!), through listening to them talk, I heard that they had played every single day of the holidays. My group of friends all live reasonably far away, and some of them would rather eat rubbish whilst playing the latest shooter at an Internet cafe.
While we were setting up the 'field' (putting carpet over drains, and scooters on the carpet so it wouldn`t blow away and putting a marker for the boundary rope and chairs for wickets) they were all talking about what they bowl, how they bat, etc. And then asked me what I did. The subject of cricket had already proved an ice-breaker, and further proved to be one.
The rest (as the classics say) was a dream. I can`t remember EVER enjoying a game (or some games) of cricket so much.
We played two 'Test matches' and a 'One-dayer'. One of the best things was, that everyone was about equal talent. Of course, some people were better than others. But that didn`t stop the perhaps 'not-as-good' people having their moments.
I`m not trying to be up myself here: There was an incident when I was bowling to Nitesh. I was bowling reasonably paced full balls, and I was sure I could get him out, 'knowing' I was better. The first three he played and missed. The next three were all out-side edges that raced for four! And I enjoyed it! I take my cricket way too seriously sometimes, and I think normally, I would have mouthed off or the like. But after each four he hit, everyone laughed, and I walked back to my mark, light in step.
A key thing to mention, is that it was a 30+ degree day! Cricket can be tiring at the best of times, so an unseasonably warm day can really spoil a game. But it was awesome. Awesome for so many reasons.
After the games, it was 4:00, and we headed to the shops for a late lunch. It was while walking to them, I realised what exactly had happened! Only hours ago, I was feeling so uncomfortable, that I had contemplated making a lame excuse and heading home. And now, I was laughing and joking with these guys like we had been best buddies since birth!
I`m going on an awesome youth camp this weekend called Kyckstart, and bar that, that day of cricket will be the best thing I do all holidays.
Why have I bothered posting this? The joy of cricket! God has given me, given us, a wonderful gift that is this game. It turned complete strangers into friends. Something so simple, had given us a connection I seriously doubt would have been otherwise possible.
I said before, that this series if Cricket games were awesome for so many reasons. And there were many reasons. But a main one must have been that we could all communicate in a truly unique language. The language of cricket!
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