Bonjour!🇫🇷
Oct 21, 2022
The start of Year 2🔥
If you couldn’t tell by the title…I’m in France🤗 I’m really happy and excited to be playing for TMB in the French League (LFB) this season.
Getting Ready🏀
I’ve been here for about 7 weeks, and this has been a long, but good preseason. We’ve played 6 scrimmages against teams in and out of our league. I feel like we’ve gotten better each game as we get closer to our first match October 29th. The competition is top notch, so I’m excited for our team and what we can do this season.
For those of you who want to tune in, the games will be streamed on the FFBB YouTube page 💻
Season Schedule — Times are in Central European Time
One of my close friends recently asked “Write one thing the Lord has done in these past 5 years that you never expected”. I really had to stop and think where I was 5 years ago. October of 2017 I was down bad 😅. But, it’s reminders like these that make me pause and think of His Goodness and Sovereignty. Everyday I say a simple ‘Thank You God’. I get to play basketball as my “job”; and, in my unbiased opinion😉, it’s the best job in the world. You’re going to pay me to do something I love, stay in shape, get better, AND travel? Bet. Say less.
Fun Fact: Our city is the aerospace capital of Europe, so we did our media day at the Space Center📸🚀
Je ne parle pas Français😬
As an American it’s easy to automatically assume, or even expect, people in a different culture to speak English to cater to us. But, with that mentality, we rob ourselves of the opportunity and blessing it is to interact and participate in their culture at a deeper level. So much is missed and lost in translation, or simple misunderstanding. The only thing standing in our way is our willingness to put in the effort to learn something new and grow.
Almost every country I’ve played in, with the exception of NZ, has spoken a language other than English. It can be a bit of culture shock at first, but it’s a welcome challenge. In Turkey, I learned enough Turkish to get around and have small conversations. Same in Slovakia. However, I knew those languages were only useful in those specific countries for the most part. So, I was a little motivated, but I wasn’t pressed to be “fluent”.
French is different though. Do you know how many different countries and cultures speak French?? A LOT. So I’m going to LEARN it learn it, just give me a few months 💀🤞🏾
I’m starting from ground 0. Literally the basics. And let me tell you…French. Is. Hard. If you’ve ever tried to learn it you know exactly what I’m talking about. Nothing is spelled how it sounds and there are a bunch of words that sound the same but mean something completely different.
My teammates have been great with helping me learn, but there are things that even they can’t explain to me with the grammar. It’s actually really cool though, because they get to practice their English with me and I get to try my French with them. Needless to say, it’s pretty comical at times 😂
This is my ‘I’m gonna let you finish, but I have no idea what you just said’ face #Smile&Nod
Wrap Up
Before coming out here I didn’t know what to expect. Many people told me the French were rude and they don’t like to speak English, but the basketball, food, and wine were good 😅. As you know, everyone’s experience is different, and where you’re located makes a huge difference. Being here almost 2 months, my experience has been great all around. The people I’ve met are so sweet and inviting, most speak English (some are just shy about it), and they were right about the basketball, food, and wine lol. The wine is DIFFERENT here🍷 (separate blog on that soon).
All in all life is good! I love the city, it’s beautiful and so vibrant. A teammate and I found an English-speaking church. It’s extremely diverse and an incredible picture of what the Kingdom looks like🙌🏾. I got to see my old teammate from Duke💙😈 who plays out here as well. And, I went on an AMAZING wine tour with my teammate the other weekend (10/10 recommend)🙌🏾 .
This is just a reminder that life is a beautiful thing and it’s all a matter of perspective. Is everyday perfect? Absolutely not. But God is. And each day I see that more and more. I’m learning, growing, and loving in new ways, which is both scary and exciting🙏🏾
I can’t wait to hear from and see y’all soon. If any of you are on this side of the water, let me know!🌊 Thanks for reading and always rocking with me! Like, comment, and subscribe🙌🏾
Love y’all ✌🏾❤️
