As much as I love reading and writing, these things alone don't pay the bills. My full time job is actually retail: I work for Foot Locker. Retail has a pretty bad rep, but I quite enjoy it. Every day is different, and I get to meet some really interesting people.
For the past few months, I've been spending most of my work days running our store's House of Hoops section. This branch of FL is dedicated to Nike basketball, and brings me plenty of customers who are dedicated to the sport.
I love interacting with people who are passionate. People who have been wearing Jordans since they were kids, people who have to have the latest in b-ball fashion, young people who are just starting to build their collections. People of all ages who feel alive every time they set foot on a court. People who are just learning to play. People who are looking for their very first pair of basketball shoes, and people who are replacing the latest pair of shoes to be falling apart from abuse on the court. People who idolise Lebron, Kyrie, Kobe ... people who are inspired, and inspiring.
I love to hear their stories, and yesterday I met a girl whose story will stay with me for a long time.
She was young - eleven or twelve, I think. Athletic, and decked out in her basketball uniform after the morning's game. She came in with her mum, looking to try a pair of new Kyries, being familiar with the previous model.
When we realised the Kyrie IV wasn't going to work for her, I suggested some other models, and her mum saw more time was needed so she went to move the car, leaving her daughter alone to continue trying shoes.
I'd been flat out since I'd started, but somehow it was suddenly just the two of us, and not another customer in sight.
So to fill the silence while we tried some different styles, I asked this girl how often she played basketball. And she opened up to me.
This girl plays seven days a week.
She trains with her team(s), she trains on her own, and she plays games on weekends. She plays during school, and after. She would play more if she could, but something was stopping her.
See, during her lunch hours, she wanted to play basketball. As her friends preferred to sit around gossiping, she would instead play ball with the boys. This, however, caused a bit of trouble for her because some of the boys she played with were the boyfriends of her friends.
She was bullied for it. Some of the girls played on the same ladies team, and they would throw balls at her, claiming it was accidental. They seemed to think she was trying to steal their boyfriends. So she had begun to avoid playing with the boys.
The way she spoke so plainly about it broke my heart.
In truth, it took my back to my own high school days.
I had been the same as this girl - I chose to spend my lunchtimes playing soccer with the boys, because sitting around gossiping about reality TV just didn't excite me. The fallout wasn't a good time for me.
This girl's story took me back to my own experiences, but I could tell I was facing a girl who was much stronger than I was at that age.
She moved on to tell me how she was training hard for upcoming tryouts, working to be equally dexterous with each hand because that was important in being picked for the team. She spent her own time honing her skills, working hard to become better. I admire the hell out of that.
This girl was being bullied because of the insecurities of others, but she was still out there, busting her guts to be better. To progress, and advance. She wouldn't have mentioned the bullying if it didn't bother her, but she wasn't letting it slow her down. I told her she should never stop doing something she loves because of what others think, and she nodded as though she was inclined to think that way already.
I wanted to offer some meaningful words of encouragement, but it felt inadequate when I was already so floored by her resilience. In the end, I just said exactly what I was thinking: 'You know what? With your dedication, and your attitude, you are going to go far in life, girl. You're incredible.'
The small talk dwindled, her mum returned, customers came flooding back, and the girl picked out some Hyperdunk X that fit her like a glove.Time resumed.
The whole experience was so valuable to me, and I'm so glad to know that there are young people out there like this girl who will become the strong, fierce women of the future.
These are the stories that are so easily overlooked, that I want to tell. People who are fighting their own battles, pushing themselves every day for things they believe in. Today, this girl is fighting bullying so that she can play more of the sport she loves. Who knows what future this will build for her? Maybe one day she'll go pro, and be a role model for girls who will be in the same position she once was. And she'll be able to make their lives that much brighter because she'll be the living proof that says, 'Look what we are capable of.'
There are so many stories like this one, waiting to be told. So many people carving paths that will make this world a better place. It's the small acts of rebellion against the boxes we are forced into that will allow society to grow and thrive.
My writing veers towards myths and legends, and I feel like yesterday I caught a glimpse at the early days of a modern legend. This girl will go on to do great things, I am certain.
I feel so privileged that she opened up to me, and shared a little of her story with me, and I hope one day I can share stories like hers with the world so that more people can take notice of the overlooked who are so worthy of our admiration.
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