We're Going to Be Friends

With the Women's World Cup upon us, it is incredible to see how a sport can unite the world.  Soccer makes it possible for people from Equatorial Guinea and Brazil to have a common ground, even if it's only for 90 minutes. What soccer does on a global scale is something people are always talking about and something that is well established: fans of the game come together to enjoy the sport they love.

As a player, though, I've seen first hand how soccer can bring people together, and ultimately, keep them together.

I can honestly say that the majority of my soccer friends are people I probably would have never been friends with had I not met them on the field.  I can go through them and give you reasons why, but we all know that I have way too many friends for that. What I can tell you, though, is how soccer made us friends, and how soccer will keep us friends.

Now, obviously this is just a theory of mine, and last I checked, I'm no philosopher, but usually people write about what they think they know about, right?

I think about my friends a lot. I always wondered how soccer can keep me so connected to them. Then one day, I found the answer: passion.

It's really hard to play soccer at a high level if you're not passionate about it. It's really hard to do anything at a high level if you're not passionate about it. But what I've found about soccer players is that for the most part, they're passionate about everything they do. I remember team bowling outings that were some of the most competitive experiences of my life, simply because a lot of my teammates were passionate about winning. I have friends who are incredible artists, speakers, business women, promoters, musicians and coaches. They are passionate about what they do. And that's why I love them. That's why I understand them and they understand me. Because we're one in the same.

This has made the friend selection outside of soccer really interesting. The first thing I look for in people is if they are passionate or not.

That makes me wonder yet again. Does soccer bring passion out of someone who doesn't have it? Or do passionate people choose to play soccer?

I don't have the answer to this. And I think it's something difficult to measure because most kids start at such a young age and it would be hard to say if they are truly passionate about anything at that point.

I have found as of late that I don't care what you are passionate about. I don't care if it's car racing, flowers or Frosted Flakes. As long as you are passionate about something and you care about something enough that it makes you feel. If you're Frosted Flakes are too soggy, it pisses the eff out of you, and when they're perfect, man, it makes your freaking day. But whatever it is, it makes you feel something. If you don't care about anything, nothing will bother you. You won't be sad. You won't be happy or angry. You'll just exist. Flatline. Blah. Boring.

But if you have passion, not only will you live just a little bit more, but you'll meet other people who are similar and even more so than that, you'll see that your attitude can be contagious. AND above all of that, you will have the possibility to be my friend and let's face it, it doesn't get much better than that ;)