Dear soccer,
It has been 44 days, 1,056 hours (I'm not keeping count) since I heard the final whistle of the last soccer game to start this horrific and boring quarantine. After that final whistle that meant my favorite team, Cruz Azul defeated our arch-rivals America, I stayed in shock, I didn’t know if I should smile or break in tears. A millisecond later I already missed being in my living room or backyard with my dad, siblings and uncles watching even the most insignificant games. But now as we get to the end of April and the beginning of May the
missing of stepping a pitch or turning my TV on to the only channels that matter (TUDN, ESPN, FOX, NBC, BEin Sports) grew immensely. For me and many college students, late April and early May is the most stressful time as we have finals or big end-of-year projects. During this time some people look to music or chatting with friends to combat this school-overload but I (and I’m sure many other scholars) always looked for soccer as my therapy. As soon as I stepped on the pitch I instantly forgot about all my worries, it was just me and the ball. But now it’s just me in my room, doing nothing but over-thinking and losing my hair and mind over homework. Soccer this is the time I need you the most! I would say return already but I get it it's our health that is a stake. But realistically speaking am I in a healthy situation without you distracting me or being my brake from the school-overload. I don’t think so. I don't even want to think about the kids who love this sport. How are they keeping it together? If 5-year-old Victor experienced this I'm sure he will bump his head against the wall until he was given permission to play ball. But, SOCCER I thank you for teaching me life lessons because believe it or not from your athletes I learned how to survive this semester. To survive the school situation COVID-19 has put us in I will need, the patience Andres Iniesta had with the ball in his feet, the time management of the Atletico de Madrid coach Diego Simeone, the dedication of Totti to stay at home (in his case Rome was his home) and the hard work of Cristiano Ronaldo. Finally, I want to say thank you, doctors, nurses, and essential workers. To us soccer fans you guys are today's Leo Messi’s.