El Nino

It was love at first sight……I still remember it like it was yesterday…..the way he, they, it made me stare and brought a smile on my face! It was nothing like I’d ever seen before, and I knew from that moment that this was one of beauty’s True forms! I longed for more….I dreamt about it…..I could feel the happiness pulsing through me for that month! It was so special and unique because they, especially He, made the ball move to some unheard, exotic beat, and it seemed as if the ball wanted to dance to it!
I was, till then, a cricket fan….but the moment my 10 year-old eyes feasted on the Brazilians playing or rather dancing at the 2002 FIFA World Cup…..it was love on sight!!! I couldn’t believe there existed something so elegant, precise and outright genius, and it had taken me 10 whole years to find it! Game after game I watched them, just tapping the ball and prancing around the field, yet creating so much chaos for the opposing team. And to top it all off, they never seemed to stop smiling nor did they ever behave badly! I grew to respect the team and the game within days!
As they wove their way into the hearts of the people and through each stage of the tournament, my admiration and extreme respect fell on one man: Ronaldo (Not Cristiano Ronaldo for Pete’s sake!), shirt no. 9, one of the best strikers of his time and the top scorer of the 2002 World Cup! The Brazilian genius made that one month of the 2002 FIFA World Cup one of the most beautiful moments of my life ( I know what you must be thinking, “How pathetic can she get if one of the best moments of her life was by watching TV”, right?!). But it wasn’t so much the match itself or its outcome, but the way it was played…..it was so entrancing that it made me realize that beauty can be in many different forms! Um, that was like a life changing realization to a kid people! I had learnt something big there, and it sent chills down my spine when I realized it!
I learnt a lot that month….had many epiphanies….all thanks to the Brazilians and their dancing! To date I can’t forget (doubt I ever will!) their lithe gentle handling of the ball, the imaginary music that would automatically play in my head each time they dribbled the ball and the warm fuzzy feeling I would get when I saw Him use the most Brilliant footwork to score the most Wonderful goal ever!
Cheers to them(my Samba Boys)<3

Love,
a football addict,
Ananya!