Just in time for the World Cup, one of my favorite events in Boston is about to take place--Soccer Nights. I am by no means athletic, and so most people are surprised to learn that I took part in this volunteer community event with such enthusiasm--even one time playing the role of assistant coach! Soccer Nights is a free soccer camp for children that takes place for a week in the summer in various locations throughout Boston. Besides teaching soccer skills to young people, it also teaches leadership, and is a catalyst for bringing the community together.
During my last three years in Boston, before getting married and moving to Brazil, I volunteered a lot in North Cambridge, the neighborhood where Soccer Nights was born. It was there that I met some great friends from various parts of the world, learned some techniques for painting henna designs from Bangladeshi neighbors, and challenged some long-held assumptions I'd held, one of which being my ability to get involved in sports activities, even to the extent of playing some leadership roles. I also learned how to simultaneously be a good party host and a good party guest--something that comes into play when I teach.
Soccer--or football as it is known anywhere outside the United States--brings out both the best and the worst in people, as we can see in the behavior of fans. I was honored to be involved in a community where it sought to bring out the best.
Some of the most amazing sunsets I've enjoyed in New England happened over Russell Field--sometimes right after a wild thunderstorm! It always brought me great joy to look out under the sky ablaze with color, across the field at the kaleidoscope of T-shirts, saris, hijabs, and smiles as a celebration of football united families throughout this diverse community on hot summer evenings. Teams of kids divided by age practiced soccer skills like dribbling, passing, and shooting, as well as life skills like dreaming up better things for their neighborhood and planning small steps to bring their dreams to life. Parents spread out picnic blankets on the sidelines, while kids who were too young to play were engaged with other activities. Some highlights of the week were a parents vs. coaches game, a game for moms (and others), a nightly gathering to wrap-up the evening with a dance, a tournament to end the week, and a volunteers' after-party mid-week at a local pizza and bowling place.
 |
| I may have worn the same hat and T-shirt, but this isn't me--it's my friend Cara, who I admire deeply! |
Of the different roles I played, one of my favorites took place my final year, as I set out to build community among the parents. Many adults in this neighborhood are fairly new to the U.S., and may not have had many chances to make friends outside their own cultural networks. Many learned--or are still learning--English as a second (or third+) language.
On the first day of the week, I brought one of my classic go-to mixers for English classes--human bingo, hoping to break the ice and help build new friendships. I made a bingo board with various squares that had to be completed by adding someone's name after asking a question. For example, people had to "find someone who...moved to Cambridge recently / has a birthday the same month as yours / has a child the same age as yours / drank tea today / was at the first Soccer Nights in 2008," etc. To win bingo, a player had to have five boxes in a row, vertically, horizontally, or diagonally, filled in with different people's first names. As I approached folks with the paper, they got shy at first, no doubt thinking it was some advertisement or form to fill out, but once people understood the game, they took right to it. I regret not being organized with prizes when about ten people, on all sides of the field, got bingo at nearly the same time.
Other parent activities that week involved making signs to cheer on their children's teams, doing henna (common among many cultures there) with folks on the bleachers, and there was likely tea (also common, even in hot weather), and definitely an all-female soccer game.
One year I got a whole bunch of my students--adults visiting the United States for a brief amount of time to study English and experience culture--to volunteer for Soccer Nights. Some painted little kids' faces, others helped with logistics, setting up and taking down the field, but the role I was especially thrilled to see filled--a much-needed one at that--was that of coaches and assistant coaches. A handful of young adults from Turkey, Brazil, and Colombia, all passionate football players, took their love of the game, combined it with an English experience, and gave an unforgettable gift to a group of children.
You would think that since moving to Brazil I would be involved in all sorts of volunteer activities--football and other. Although I have volunteered from time to time, I've found life as an English teacher here to be much more time-consuming, with multiple groups, ages, and levels demanding lots more lesson planning and mental energy than I used to spend teaching exchange students. And when volunteer work often means teaching English classes (something I did eagerly back in Boston), I just can't conjure up the mental stamina to keep going after a long week, though I deeply admire those who manage to do it. If I can ever get my life balanced again, I'd like to do more.
One volunteer activity I started in Boston that I've managed to bring to Brazil is doing henna to raise money for refugees. My old weekend job drawing caricatures, and doing face painting and henna at parties gave me some good basic training, but, as mentioned above, I also learned a lot by watching some Bangladeshi neighbors draw quick and beautiful designs on people's hands. And thanks to the Internet, I learned how to mix my own henna with all natural ingredients. After a volunteer trip to do children's activities with refugee families living in Jordan, (brightening their lives with henna, among other things), and during a particularly dark winter in Boston, I got an idea. I decided to contribute anything I earned from henna outside of my job to help refugees, mainly those from Syria and Iraq. This project took on various forms over the years, but now I have a campaign page through the International Rescue Committee, and what I earn from certain commissions of artwork and any henna events I do goes directly there.
Recently, in honor of International Refugee Day on June 20th, I hosted a henna workshop at the bi-national center I teach at. The fee that students paid to participate will go to help the IRC's work with refugees. Participating students got to learn some basic henna techniques, and, after practicing on paper, were given the opportunity to draw temporary tattoos on themselves or others, as they were comfortable. And I was available to draw designs on participants, as well.
In addition, my dear friend Gizem from Turkey called in via Skype. She chatted with us about henna in her culture, the celebration of Eid, marking the end of fasting during the month of Ramadan (which happened to coincide with our event), her perspective of the refugee crisis, and also about her daily life and her experience living abroad in the USA. Only a few students ended up coming to the workshop, and our contribution to the IRC is just a tiny drop in the bucket, but, one conversation, one design at a time, we are bringing people together and building bridges of peace.
Soccer Nights began just over 10 years ago, the direct result of a simple "What if..." question asked by someone who cared about the community--"What if we got a bunch of folks in this neighborhood together with soccer?" My henna campaign began the same way--"What if I offered this beautiful piece of Middle Eastern and North African culture with the intention of helping refugees from that same region?" With the absolutely abhorrent treatment of, and shameful attitudes toward refugees, immigrants and families seeking asylum in my home country these days, this kind of work seems even more important. Things are never as simple as they seem, but that shouldn't stop us from taking meaningful actions. How about letting more "What if's" take on actual form? What starts with a "What if..," when allowed a chance to develop, fueled by passion, and brought to life by many hands, can result in a tapestry of compassion, community, and connections that invite us and others to be better global citizens. Sometimes it all starts with a soccer ball, a meal, a shared project, or a simple conversation with a neighbor.
Comments