JULY 2014
9
The 2014 competition of the World Cup has so far been extremely thrilling for me as a spectator. While I have never considered myself much of a sports individual, I do agree with the notion that soccer or its actual term, football, truly retains the ability to connect the world and as the games progress, I find myself more than willing to root for teams that I had never given a second thought to before and those that I considered myself loyal to, such as Ghana.
On June 16th, as I lied in bed after an exhausting eight hour shift at work, I readied myself for the first math between Ghana and the United States. The entire house was abuzz with excitement, even though my younger sister was blatantly rooting for the United States and while I was thoroughly lacking knowledge in regards to the logistics of the game, I simply knew that I would be able to immerse myself fully into the game through the spirit that I shared with the Ghanaian fans, who were adorned with gear from the Ghanaian national football team, flags, paint, et cetera.
Although the game concluded on a heartbreaking end for myself, my family, and the number of Ghanaian fans who were glued to their television screens and once I was able to allow myself to remove the feelings of disappointment from my head, I realized my willingness to dance along with Asamoah Gyan whenever he scores a goal and feel the visible pang of anguish along with the Ghanaian fans when we lose did not stem from the pleasure in which I found in watching the match but from being a Ghanaian and cheering on my country as the athletes would go on to represent our small West African nation the size of Oregon.
As a child, I knew that I was Ghanaian because my family celebrated that aspect of ourselves with such pride and that was the ethnicity in which I identified with. However, I never truly understood what it meant to be a Ghanaian until I matured and gained perspective. In the past, I often found myself struggling with who I was in respect to my Ghanaian ethnicity. I felt so obviously different from my Ghanaian peers that I saw at church and other events, mostly due to my reserved nature. However, with a bit more confidence, I learned the importance of fully embracing who I was in terms of my culture even if I was not the same as everyone else. It has been a wonderful and eye-opening journey of self discovery and realization and I look forward to the moments, such as what I am currently experiencing with the World Cup, that will further shape me into the Ghanaian woman that I want to be.
Yes, I was born in the United States and have been raised here for the majority of my life as I lived in Ghana for a four-year period but being a Ghanaian is a part of me that I can never change and will never try to regardless of where I am. While I can only see myself turning to the only sport I can understand – and I say that very loosely – four years from now with the World Cup 2018 competition, I will always be proud to support the Black Stars, win or lose (although, I would love for a win!) as I continue to not only serve as a fan but a proud Ghanaian.
A Goal
for Culture
by Anelle Mensah