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The Story
In the early 1960's, hundreds of miles from civilization in the
Amazon, a white man stood at the edge of a clearing extending a steel
axe towards a trembling man who held a stone axe in his hand. Behind
him, a small band of naked Indians chanted and gripped their bows and
arrows tightly, awaiting the outcome of this first contact.
Almost
fifty years have passed since that day when my grandfather traded his
steel axe for a stone axe and for the first time locked eyes with the
people he had come to protect and love, laying the groundwork for our
family history and a relationship that continues today. Just a few
weeks ago i sat with Tade, the courageous warrior who stepped forward
to meet my grandfather, who now is in his seventies and whose
beautiful smile greeted me daily as i came to his hut to watch him
make arrows or speak of his last hunt.
My father and I had returned to
bring a medical team in to help those so close to our hearts who are
so far from civilization and suffering from monumental health
challenges. As the Cessna airplane climbed into the sky off the little
jungle airstrip; we were encouraged that so many were attended and
could return to their huts along the river to healthier lives.
That is
an interesting story you may say but why does this end up on the PISA
website of all places? Simply put, soccer is the new passion for
tribal groups across the Amazon and these friends are no exception. As
I assembled necessary equipment for the trip I knew that i would need
to bring in soccer equipment as they always request that I run soccer
clinics for all ages and run training sessions for the men. Now, I am
not the brightest man out there and certainly one would be insane to
allow me to perform even the most simplistic medical or dental
procedure (Flossing can be a challenge for me) BUT I can use the
beautiful game to bring a smile to the faces that need them.
PISA was gracious enough to donate the necessary equipment to make
those smiles possible. I just wanted to thank PISA and it's members
for having a broader vision than just Carolina Beach and for seizing
the opportunity to help those without the simple things that we take
for granted each day.
My challenge to the PISA community (players, parents, coaches, and
staff) is to simply recognize how fortunate we are to have what we
have here at PISA each weekend. We have healthy children playing a
beautiful game at great facilities surrounded by staff, coaches, and
parents that care for them. Most of the world will never experience
what we at PISA experience every weekend.
It is a gift.
Let's keep our focus on these huge blessings and not on the little
distractions that rob us of our joy.
- Joey Johnson, PISA Coach
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