From: Jordan Burnam / Kenya Team - 7/23, 9:40am

I (Jordan) grew up in Mexico as a missionary kid. As the stereotype would hold I grew up playing soccer since I was six years old. As you can imagine, I get pretty excited when the World Cup comes around as it only does so every four years. Getting to watch about three games a day for almost a month straight is any soccer enthusiasts dream. While that passion for soccer isnt shared by most people in the United States, that passion for soccer (or football rather) in Kenya definitely is, especially with this World Cup having been hosted on the African continent for the first time ever. Football here is taken pretty seriously and as we drive around the city, people can be seen playing soccer. In church on Sunday during the service at Mavuno Downtown, several titles were given to different World Cup soccer players as a joke. Even the question was asked whether people were sad or happy now that the World Cup was over, and people responded in the microphone. Definitely different than most church services in the United States.


This passion for soccer is also shared by most of the students at the Raila Educational Center. Several of the conversations Ive had with them have been around the World Cup and soccer in general. Naturally, Ive joined in several soccer games with the kids and its been a lot of fun. Now for a little bit of World Cup trivia. During the World Cup a special ball is made. This years model was called the Jabulani. . The average price for this ball, the Jabulani, is somewhere around $150 US dollars. For the most part, there were a lot of complaints about the ball, mainly that it moved too fast, it was too unpredictable, etc. Overall, it got a poor review by the players and the announcers.


At Raila, the kids who have actual soccer balls are pretty lucky. Most of the students play with a few plastic bags all rolled up together and then tightly wound by another string of plastic. I even saw some kids playing soccer with a plastic water jug as their ball. If people complained about the Jabulani being bad, these kids have every right to complain about the ball, or lack thereof, that they have to play with. And yet, they weren't complaining. After seeing that, I have to really wonder, is it right for me to complain about all the little things that I let bother me? If maybe I take a second to remember how blessed I am compared to most people, perhaps I would be quicker to say thanks and not spout off complaints. It puts do everything without arguing or complaining in a whole different light doesnt it?