Sports can bring out the best and worst in people and relationships. 

Even if you don't play in a game just attending one can illustrate the highs and lows.  Case in point, the recent contraversy over the David Beckham jersey at the Pan Pacific Soccer games at Aloha Stadium back in February.

Two kids, ages 9 and 10, had front row seats for the action.  They love soccer and were thrilled to root for soccer uber star Beckham. 

After the game Beckham came near the stands and gestured towards them or one of them before handing over his game jersey.

From that high of a lifetime, things just went south.  Way south.

Reportedly a solution of jan ken po with winner getting sole possession of the jersey wasn't good enough.  Instead two good friends aren't that friendly any more with each set of parents pointing at the other side as being the bad guys.  A lawsuit is even tossed out there.

Comments from the blog attached to the story on the Advertiser basically say how poor a life lesson it is for all involved.  

I agree that parents have to set good examples for their kids.  Yes, a star's jersey is cool.  Either share it or give it one of them.  Somebody please step up, be the bigger kid or better parents and solve it quietly. Yeah it sucks you may not have the jersey but being gracious is more important in the long run.

That's a person you keep as a friend for a lifetime.

Still with me?

Compare the soccer-jersey-gate to this.

Cubans Yunel Escobar and Brayan Pena have been best friends forever, growing up just a street apart in Cuba.

They didn't have much.  Not a lot of money.  Just a solid friendship and a love of baseball.

The two shared it all growing up - gloves, bats, balls, shoes.

When somebody smuggled in a Tom Glavine and John Smoltz jersey.  The two Atlanta Braves fans solved the dilemma of who gets which uniform top.

They would swap them from time to time.

In the spring of 1999, Pena received an email detailing a plan for him to defect to the United States to pursue baseball.  It was cloak and dagger stuff.  On this day, go down to the hotel lobby and look for the guy wearing a white shirt and white cap.

Pena was dieing to tell his childhood friend of the plan but couldn't for Escobar's own protection.  If something went wrong Pena wanted all the blame.

So Pena stepped into a car and was gone.  A friendship seemigly left behind as well.

Pena's defection still had ramifications for Escobar.  He was questioned extensively by Cuban officials who were none to thrilled about his friend's defection.  For two years followed by security, even to the bathroom.

In 2004 Escobar made his own play for freedom.

Instead of a Mercedes whisking him away, he joined a couple dozen Cubans in a small fishing boat making the perilous trip to Miami.  Risking drowning and sharks for a chance at something better in life.

A few months later, Escobar tracked down his long lost childhood friend.  In one big hug, five years of friendship on hold was back on.  Solid as ever.

The two went to a Cuban restaurant and couldn't stop saying "You go first! No, you!" on who should start the catch up on life discussion.

Today the two best friends are also teammates on the Braves.

When I read this story in Sports Illustrated, it reminded me of the soccer jersey mess.

Here in Hawaii, two kids with everything, good homes, video games, and so on - fight over one top.

The two Cubans didn't have much but they had friendship.

Hopefully the Hawaii story will have a happy ending like Escobar and Pena.

  

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 1st, 2008 at 12:30 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.