A few months ago (December 18, I think), I wrote about our basketball team. A few months ago, a championship was a far dream. So near, yet so far, time and time again. It eluded us so much that I have actually memorized the words of comfort I needed to say to get these kids going. A smile to go along with the words that I hope could give even just a bit of comfort after doing all they could.
It's one thing to talk to kids to try their best. To tell them that if they want something they should work for it. That if you try hard enough, practice, inevitably, you may get to orphwhere you want to go. But it is another thing when so many factors are unfairly thrown in their path.
That has been the case for so many years. The same struggle that others endured long before we even came into the picture. It just got this way because we were the closest to ever come to that level and finally, to surprisingly succeed.
Last Friday was like the DLSU-ADMU game for us. Coming against what was already an institution. CPC has been the champion for the past 17 years. That's more than half my lifetime. Roots have been planted, ties have been made, then all of a sudden, we come in. Barely 5 years old. What did we know?
No fancy recruitment, no A list players drafted. Just kids who practiced so hard and for the longest time. Kids who never made it outside of Roxas. Kids who were so happy to get snacks after practice. An orphan, others homeless, another forgotten by his parents. But even through all that, grades were still the issue. The ones who were just in on it just for the game, didn't succeed in time and naturally faded out of the picture.
Together with a new coach who never coached anything before. With a funny last name and a cartoonish disposition. Who would have thought?
But Friday gave us something that we were used to so it came down to game 3 on Saturday. As it was on our previous match ups, the Capiz Gym was packed to capacity. I've watched other shows and games there but it was mind blowing how this beat them all. Not only were there students from both sides but spectators, politicians, people who worked for us, people who had no affiliation with the schools at all.
Saturday, proved to be another very close game. Experience has taught me that as long as CPC doesn't lead over 20 points, we almost always can catch up. Thats exactly what happened.
With an unbelievably close shave we actually won. Tears of joy finally came in the place of the tears of frustration that was a common sight for so many years already.
Unfortunately, a brawl broke out and the crowd got unruly. This resulted to a stabbing of one of CPC's players.
People get so worked up and emotions run high with these things. Not to mention so many people have other motives (betting was the big thing). But they fail to realize that this is still, after all, only just a game and there are so many much more relevant and important things to life.
On our part, I know our players had nothing to do with it. I've gotten to know them, shared stories and seen how they are. Not to mention the people saw what happened. It just hurts that so many other stories have come out. What had been a basic collegiate game has turned out to be one of the worst and best times that have happened to these kids.
I hope and pray that Espaniola gets better but God knows how that came about in the first place. But even then, these things should have never happened and I hope they find the guy who did it.
As for the rest, it still isn't important, winning. It's how you got to that point and how you prepared. Even if we did win, we still haven't received the trophy and honestly... it doesn't matter. Our lives haven't changed and trophies can be bought easily. Its finally getting the justification for what we have been telling them over and over and over. If you work hard and you do your best, you can achieve whatever you set your mind to.
It was also a matter of breaking something that was all wrong and proving that hard work and perseverance does prevail no matter how many factors try to get in the way. So regardless if we win or lose next year, more reason for us to do more and experience more. It's a lesson either way.
GO JAGUARS! To God be the glory victorious or otherwise.
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