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by PAM
I haven't lived through a single month with so much trials, turmoil, devastation, test of character and strong resolve to do what was right, amazement over so many fantastic and/or shocking things, and tremendously joyful moments of sweet little victories, too... until October 2013 came along, that is. These events plastered on my calendar (and now my memory) like contrasting stripes... and you can just imagine the emotion that went with every stripe. Up to the very last hour of October 2013, I was debating with myself on whether I made the right decision on this and that... especially THAT! :) If you were my friend, and I have been talking to you over the last week or so (and that's like two or three of you only), you know what that is. Yep, extremely challenging... that's what October 2013 has been for me. But, yep, I've never felt more alive, more 'accomplished', and somewhat wiser and braver... just because every single piece of effort was spent for someone except myself, spent for a cause bigger than myself.
For every October 2013 challenge won, I felt tremendous joy... and when I finally made the decision on that, it was totally liberating - whatever the implication of my decision was. The important thing is I gathered enough courage and bravery to confront the challenge, stare it down like I was unafraid, acknowledge borrowed wisdom from the people I look up to in order to trim the choices to just two, made the choice, and put my decision in black and white... 'cause either way, there will be uncertainties and heavy sacrifices... and maybe, even hurt feelings - and, mostly mine, too, that's for sure. I'm glad I took the more difficult choice - the harder decision. 'Cause I realized after a few days of reflection that there is greater opportunity to be happy about it when all is said and done. All I need to do is live one day at a time... hold on to my faith, the very good intentions and hopeful aspirations in my heart, and work very, very (very, very) hard to make the decision work... and try to enjoy every minute of it, too.
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Thanks for the 'beauty' and the time to appreciate it
In the meantime, THANKS, October. Despite the tremendous 'hardship' you brought, you've proven yourself to be generous enough to give me the precious time for this...
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| Finally, some 'beauty'. Oy! |
It's been months since I last saw similar beautiful images on my television screen. It felt like it's been forever since I last felt the delicious, delicious exhilaration that those images bring. The excitement that makes your heart race and pushes you to the edge of your seat is unbelievable. The burst of emotion that makes you jump and scream, "whoa, aweeeesoooome!" is absolutely priceless! :) It's strange that these beautiful images and delicious exhilaration should come again to rekindle my love for the 'beautiful game' on a hard, hard month that October 2013 is! Mysterious, life is.
Oh, but I have to say, FC Barcelona's away kit is, ahem, ugly. :) And their defense still sucks! Their passing is less than impeccable, too. What's going on?
I know that they are still convinced, like Pep Guardiola was during his tenure as Barça big boss, that 'the best defense is offense', but other sides have already caught on, and are exploiting the weak Barça defense. On the other hand, the heavy defense of sides like AC Milan for instance has been making the Blaugranes forwards work tremendously hard to find cracks and create space... and the Catalan men pay such heavy price on counter-attacks because their backline is weak. Tata Martino needs to figure this out - how to strengthen the Barça backline. They still bring home the bacon, that's true, but they need to get back
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| Pep's not-so-secret weapon back in his Barça days. |
Winning for Barça these days must be all about dynamic adjustment of tactics on the pitch, because other sides have already figured out the Barça greatness under Pep's leadership. Martino needs to infuse his brand of greatness to Barça - quickly and effectively - a uniqueness that will surprise the other sides, and delay their reaction on the pitch - to give Barça enough time to keep scoring a win. That was the beauty of Pep's leadership in Barça... he led his men to stay with the delightfully beautiful tiki-taka patiently, patiently, and ever patiently! Waited for the opponent to feel frustrated and confused, and waited still until they let a space open up in their frustration and confusion. Messi and his cohorts would then go in like the flash of lightning through the little cracks in the defense to score a win! They did that all the time... their opponents became weary of this, nervous of this... and it gave Barça the aura of mystery and unmatchable intelligence on the pitch, quickness that 'killed', and invincibility that was hard to figure out. This is why Pep designed his tactics around Messi because Messi had the quickness and precision that Pep needed for his tactics to work. Add to that Messi's youthful enthusiasm to play quick and beautiful, and Pep had the perfectly adorable side that played beautiful and exciting football. But José Mourinho figured out Pep's Barça
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| Tata Martino... concocting the new recipe for winning. |
Martino, while he needs to be faithful to the Barça's brand of 'beautiful football', must come up with this uniqueness... something that will surprise their opponents, the way Pep surprised his opponents during his tenure, the way Pep found the winning formula. Martino still has Messi - the best player in the world... and now, he has Neymar Jr., too. He still has Xavi Hernandez and Andrés Iniesta, and Cesc Fàbregas still shows brilliance given the right opportunity. Like the ever-reliable attacking midfielder, Sergio Busquets, the work efficiency and dedication of Javier Mascherano in the defense line deserves kudos, too. While Gerard Piqué seems to need some 'straightening up', Dani Alves remains lethal, and Adriano Correia seems 'moldable' to a bigger role. In short, everyone has got it in him to deliver the goods when asked... and that's a lot to work with to concoct the new winning recipe for Barça. The question is, when will Martino start hammering his influence through?
Alright, November, I wanna know the answer to that question. Therefore, be kind!
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