The world fills our cups.

I went out last night and got a chance to watch a World Cup match.  It was S. Korea v Ghana and I was all in for it.  My friend JY is Korean, so I had a bit of an interest in the match.  Also, I have a general interest in futbol, especially on the world stage and it was great to experience that internationally as well.

A blend of folks were around us, mostly Thai, so it was a weird mix of Asian pride for Korea and rivalry of Thai people who cheered for Ghana.  Mix in a few other expats who had a rooting interest in the match for advancing their country or potential match ups in the next round and it was a cool mix of people.  

A few times, I got cheers’d by random strangers and the match was a good one.  It was a community type feeling of all of us watching together.  It didn’t matter if you were cheering on one side or the other, what mattered was good futbol, good company, good fun, and that it wasn’t life or death.  It was a game.  A well played, hard fought game.  S.Korea lost in the end, but not for lack of trying or chances.   

It was exciting.

Kiddo might be a munch some days.  J might be busy with work and life some days.  Some days might be hard.  But, how many of you reading this can say you sat in a foreign country, sipping on a beer, while watching a random World Cup match?

We landed and went into Quarantine, but in that, we got to fill some of our time with watching the 2020 (2021 really) Tokyo Olympics and now, 15ish months later, we get a World Cup.  We also had a winter Olympics.  Next year, we get the Women’s World Cup.  2024, we may be in Thailand, we may be moving to another country, we may just be moving apartments, but we’ll have the 2024 Olympics as well.  

We get to live and experience these global events on a global scale.

And now that the world in opening back up and public events are starting to reopen and things are calming down regarding Covid and taking Kiddo to see a futbol match here.  It would be less than 1000 baht for us to go.  That’s approx $30.  That would be field level tix, transport, and food/drinks.  What an experience for Kiddo, if and when we manage to go.  Her first baseball game was in California.  Her first futbol match in Thailand.  What can we give her next?  First basketball game in Europe?  First concert in Japan?  Taking her to see Korean or Japanese baseball?  Maybe the World Baseball Classic… Some of those games will be in Taiwan and Japan.  

Experiences like that can’t be bought.  Living brings those things.  And some people live different.  That’s cool.  I don’t see why some people can’t just accept that.  I don’t see why my apple pie needs to ruin your pecan pie experience.  And maybe Kiddo will end up being a pumpkin pie kind of girl.  Maybe she’s a blueberry cake type girl.  Only time will tell, but just look at and think about the experiences we are giving her.  The new things.  The life we are sharing with her, exposing her too, and letting her see first hand.

We look at it this way.  We took her (and ourselves in some ways) out of the 10 color crayon box and introduced her to the 100 color pack.  Even if we returned to America next year, Kiddo would always have those colors and memories of those colors with her.  Her world and mindset are so fundamentally changed.  

More than that, more than a World Cup match or riding the Tuks.  More than Songkran or Loy Krathang.  More than Chinese New Year or SEA Malls.  More than any of it, it gives her a compass for life and the world.  It gives her insight into if she wants to keep exploring as an adult.  What if she has kids… How will that reflect and impact her life plans, since she knows and has some empathy and understanding of expat life.  How has her world changed with the bits of Thai she’s learned.  In whatever she will learn next.  How will this change her, every step of the way, each day for the rest of her life.  

We didn’t take her away from America and family, we showed her more, gave her more, allowed her to experience and not just read about things.  She’s had her toes in the Pacific, Lake Michigan, The Gulf of Thailand, the River Kwai, and who knows where next!  

We’ve made her and ourselves global.  Willing to see the world.  To explore.  Experience.  It’s not for everyone.  But it is for us.

Let’s go Kiddo…. New adventures await everyday.