Me, Myself and I

Hi my name is Javier Martín and I am from Madrid, Spain, in this post I am going to explain how I have become who I am right now with different examples of the things that have happened to me during all my life, since I can remember. The three adjetives that I think could define me the best are: positivity, friendly and cosmopolite. And all of them have helped me during all my life to have a happy life.

The first experience where I use my friendship quality, could be in  Real Madrid, which I consider the best club in the world, they called me to try to be part of their club when I was 11-12 years old. My parents would drive me to practice and tell me “Remember you just have to have fun, don´t worry if they don´t choose you.” And I remembered I was eager to listen them, the next thing I remember of that day was on the court with at least 30 other guys bigger, taller and better than me, but there was one guy who was as tall as me and I went close to him and ask him “What is your name? Mine is Javier,” he told me his name was Ilia, and we were at all the practices doing every exercise together because, like me, he didn´t know anyone else there. When the practice finishes the coaches told  all of us they just want 6 guys and I told him, “Ok, they just want to six of us, so this is going to be difficult but they just need to choose four more because you and me are the other two,” he looked at me like I was crazy, but I was all right, because we two were choosen. The thing we didn´t know was that we were the only two who were under 15 in that practice, which explain that all the other players were bigger, taller and better than us but the best thing is that we were choosen by them and we played together for 3 years.

I can show my positivity also, when I was 15 years old and I decided with my parents to go to live in another city 400 kilometres from my home, my parents, my family and my friends. One ACB team contact with me and offered me a scholarship because of the basketball. The first time I thought about it I remember I cried because I didn´t want to go that far from everything I knew, but the next day I woke up and went to my parents, I told them “I have decided I want to try it,” because the ACB team, they told me they wanted to see if I could be good enough for them. The decision was made and they sent me two train tickets for my dad and me, we traveled to Seville for the practice, they were showing me everything, where I were going to live, the school, where I were going to practice with the team, and the big stadium of the ACB team, so I just met the coach and started practicing with three more guys. After the practice they told me they wanted me and that the last decision was mine so we came back to Madrid and told my parents, “This is going to be one year, maybe two or three, but every weekend I have free I will come and stay with you,” so they told me “Ok, if this is what you want, let´s do it,”it was only for one year but I made friends for life and by the moment is one of the best decisions I have taken in my whole life.

And finally cosmopolite, and that is why I am here in the USA, 7220 km from home learning another language, meeting a lot of people, and all of this while I practice my biggest passion: Basketball. I think to be cosmopolite has helped me since I was 15 but I can realize it now, when I am in a different country, and even more, here in Westminster College, which is helping me to know people all around the world and it is helping me to realize that I can have friends from different cultures, different points of view and understand all of them and like most of them.

My life is constantly changing, but now I know I'm the one who decides which path to follow, I am not afraid to fail, I have too much things in my life and I have being able to raise over all of them, that is why right now I can say proudly I am happy and I love my life.