Last weekend the kids and wifey and I hopped in the car and made a little road trip to Houston.
We checked into our hotel and headed over to Shell Energy Stadium where the Houston Dynamo FC of Major League Soccer play.
It was time to watch them play our favorite team—Toronto FC!
As you know if you’ve been following along, John Herdman has become a dear friend over the years.
He’s been following me and our work for over a decade and we’ve been blessed to do some Heroic work with the team and team behind the team this season.
Emerson and I have watched nearly every one of their games and he’s become one of their biggest fans.
So…
John and his team gave me and the Johnson family team a special day.
(Thanks Ted and Jordan!! 🙏 🙌!!)
Emerson got to connect with some of his favorite players (including his absolute favorite: the Italian superstar Federico Bernardeschi) and we got to have fun on the field watching the guys warm up and all that.
Now…
As we were watching them warm up and execute their drills with surgical precision, one of THE most fierce competitors on the team (seriously, the guy is a BEAST!), gave Emerson THE warmest and kindest smile as he kicked him a ball.
It was a little thing but a really special moment.
In fact, I got tears in my eyes typing that feeling into the pure joy Emerson felt when the ball rolled to his feet.
“Can I keep it?!” he asked.
“I’ll see what I can do,” I said.
Note1: We got to keep the ball and it is now the official soccer ball for the one-on-one matches the kids play on the micro soccer field I weed-wack-carved for them on our property the following day. 😆
Note2: They play those one-on-one matches wearing the goalie gloves they got from TFC’s incredibly thoughtful goalie coach, Simon Eaddy. Thank Simon! 🙌
Fun fact: The gloves are nearly bigger than Eleanor. 😆
But…
That’s not quite the point of this +1.
This is.
After the match (TFC won! 🎉!), I thanked this player and told him I really admired just how hard/rough he plays AND just how kind and thoughtful he was with Emerson.
I told him that I thought the juxtaposition of his FEROCITY during the game and his kindness in that warm up was really special.
He smiled and said: “When I’m on the pitch, I flip the switch.”
And…
That’s Today’s +1.
Here’s to embracing the full range of our humanity as we flip the switches and play our roles with all the wisdom, discipline, courage and love we’ve got.
All day.
Every day.
Especially…
TODAY.
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