I’ve
always wanted to be a professional athlete, a basketball player to be
exact; I was already 6ft 1” at high school. I was so obsessive to
workouts, sneakers, videos, posters and everything about ‘basketball’.
However, since the national league couldn’t
offer what I wanted, I decided to look for a Visa to get to one of the
colleges in America. My aunt was working at the post office back then;
transmission of applications to colleges was not so difficult.
I wrote to over ‘nangam’ colleges, had in the course secured at least six I-20s, sometimes repeatedly from one college (shout out to St. Augustine’s College Raleigh NC for the many I-20s), none of which were a success. The US Embassy invariably handed me a typical letter saying amongst other things “…you’ve not shown strong family, economic or social ties that your stay in the US will be temporal”.
Despite the devastating tryouts, I kept taking the crack at basketball, played everywhere including Senegal. One evening I was coming from the basketball lawn and I saw this ‘Bredda’, I was his senior at high school, but given that he was at the UTG at the time and i was so 'hood', he had the effrontery to tell me this:"Boy Mike (my nickname) so this is how you plan to live your life; eat, ‘campeh’ (hangout), puff the herb, play ball and sleep?”…To Allah and ‘Nabi’ I felt so insulted, but after days of considering what he said, I thought he meant well. I never wanted to quit ball and I never will, but I knew I had to take a detour.
…so, as well as going back to school, I did the following among other things:
1. I went for an interview at the Civil Aviation for the position of either Accounts Clerk or Statistic Clerk, got turned down apparently due to the mini-dreadlocks on my head back then.
2. I took a recruitment exam at Gamtel over a decade ago, I knew I did nothing short of well, but I still patiently await the results
3. I was a teacher for like 6 months, walked out 2 times and never went back after a 3rd and final quit, because from school admin to the pay mistress and everyone acted like they were doing me favours.
I wrote to over ‘nangam’ colleges, had in the course secured at least six I-20s, sometimes repeatedly from one college (shout out to St. Augustine’s College Raleigh NC for the many I-20s), none of which were a success. The US Embassy invariably handed me a typical letter saying amongst other things “…you’ve not shown strong family, economic or social ties that your stay in the US will be temporal”.
Despite the devastating tryouts, I kept taking the crack at basketball, played everywhere including Senegal. One evening I was coming from the basketball lawn and I saw this ‘Bredda’, I was his senior at high school, but given that he was at the UTG at the time and i was so 'hood', he had the effrontery to tell me this:"Boy Mike (my nickname) so this is how you plan to live your life; eat, ‘campeh’ (hangout), puff the herb, play ball and sleep?”…To Allah and ‘Nabi’ I felt so insulted, but after days of considering what he said, I thought he meant well. I never wanted to quit ball and I never will, but I knew I had to take a detour.
…so, as well as going back to school, I did the following among other things:
1. I went for an interview at the Civil Aviation for the position of either Accounts Clerk or Statistic Clerk, got turned down apparently due to the mini-dreadlocks on my head back then.
2. I took a recruitment exam at Gamtel over a decade ago, I knew I did nothing short of well, but I still patiently await the results
3. I was a teacher for like 6 months, walked out 2 times and never went back after a 3rd and final quit, because from school admin to the pay mistress and everyone acted like they were doing me favours.
3. I was onetime fuel station attendant (an uncle’s venture), business didn’t go well.
4. I had real ambitions man; traded in stuffs that I can’t even say here
4. Helped my Mom to run things at her boutique (unsalaried)
5. Traveled to Europe and had the chance to experience the ‘modou modou’ bustle. Came back and became an Auditor, quit that thing and then back to Europe, since the US has refused to have room ‘fi di bredda’ …so much backwards and forwards abroad, now I am finally back ‘ayard’ doing what I am doing, taking care of business.
I am not playing ball as before due to time and all, but I still hold sway as undefeated Dunk Champion of the Gambia from 2008 to this minute, I’m also the inspirational leader of my team (SK East Basketball Team).
No comments:
Post a Comment