Plenty of full days and sleepless nights in the tank, our last programming day finally rolled around. It had poured down rain the entire day before, so I was hopeful the weather would cooperate better. Lord knows it had to, considering I had a full set of sessions lined up, which included three across a six hour window.

Stop number one was a return back to Open Sky Junior School for a second session with their newly-enrolled students. It was a healthy mix of kids, featuring an even split of new faces and ones from the day prior. Just like our first class, the kids zipped through drills, giggling and smiling all the while. It was a joyous occasion, but the clock was ticking, so I shook Mrs. Josephine’s hand, called over a bodaboda and bid her (and the school) farewell.

I was leaving yes, but definitely not leaving them empty-handed, as I had set aside nearly a dozen soccer balls to be distributed at their will throughout the course of the next school year.

The next program of the day was a return to Katabi and to New Hope Children’s Centre. I planned to work with their adjoining school, which had just started classes that day, much like Open Sky.

The plan was to introduce another group of beneficiaries to football the Around the Worlds way. However, Mr. Godfrey had called an audible. As I passed through the front gates of New Hope, the centre’s football team, the same boys I ran two practice sessions with in the past week were all lined up and ready to go.

“They want to work with you again,” said Mr. Godfrey, adding context to the moment.

I was touched. I knew the other program with the school’s students would have its time. So, I chose to focus on the task at hand. We scurried over to Merry Hill High, once again finding ourselves at the bottom of their campus, on a gorgeous little pitch. With this being the last session with the centre’s proper football team, I decided I was going to focus on higher level skills and techniques.

Our time was limited, but my focus was not and neither was the boys’. They were locked-in, as we knocked out drill after drill, focusing on ball control, passing, crossing, and finishing. Never one to miss out on feedback, I brought them all in at the end to debrief the session. They told me what we had learned and I was quick to applaud them for their efforts.

Then, just as fast as we started, it was back to New Hope campus, where our third group of the day was already waiting. I won’t lie. This might’ve been my favorite group of the week. It was a complete mixed bag, including boys and girls, young and old. 

Luckily, I inflated an additional 10 soccer balls to be left with Mr. Godfrey, happy to have had some leftover resources leading into this last clinic of our Uganda-based run. I dumped out the 10, supplementing the 10 I had already dropped off late the week prior. Twenty footballs and about 24 kids, which was definitely doable! I lined participants up in front of me before instructing them to partner up for our listening exercise.

I mimed it charades-style, but used English too, for those who understood. They giggled, they smiled, they jumped, and they pumped their fists with each passing round. It was so much fun to watch, and even more fun to facilitate. Hoping to mix it up, I called over one of New Hope’s staff members, so that he could hit a round in the kids’ native Luganda. Having observed me earlier, he was familiar with the dynamics, but seemed to be missing out on one very important command.

“Sir! Ball, please!” yelled one of the older boys, as our honorary guest coach had kept it running a bit long. He was rifling off the list of body parts, but for minutes had forgotten the most important word – ball!

Our field was covered in dirt and dust filled the air with every step, but the kids paid it absolutely no mind. They were having the time of their lives! Of course, I couldn’t help but smile as I looked over to the sidelines, where the school’s teachers sat observing their pupils, grinning from ear to ear while doing so.

Dust filling my eyes and sun beating my skin senselessly, it was time to shift over to some dribbling exercises. Then, to relay races. The kids were engaged, and they were very quick to learn, but as always, some instruction was needed. Still, though, all it took was barely one example to free them from their confusion. The session was a coach’s dream.

Relays done and dusted, it was time to shift over to our 1v1 drill with two color-coded goals. Once the rules had been explained, everyone could not wait to get a turn in! “Me, Coach! Pick me!” a boy yelled, clutching onto his partner’s hand. “Us, Coach! Us two next!” shouted a pair of two girls.

They weren’t fully on-board yet, so I decided to hit an example with one of the older boys to help the kids out a bit. This poor boy probably should’ve stayed at home that day if he knew exactly what was about to go down. I lodged the ball between my back and his. I blew the whistle, the ball dropping to the ground below us.

“Orange!” I yelled out. Our eyes shifted to the left, where the two orange-coned goals were. I grabbed control of the ball and squared up with the little dude. Then, I baited him. I dragged the ball back, and he bit hard.

I pushed the ball forward, slotting it through his legs for a tasty little nutmeg, before providing a daft touch over the endline of our cone-laden goal. Boy, it was brutal, but I gave the little guy a shot at redemption. I let him have the next round against his partner, where he took the victory. Solidifying himself as a champion, once again, in the eyes of his classmates.

From there, the two-dozen of us circled up for “head or hands” – a mainstay in Around the Worlds programming.

My own body not getting any less tired, one of our all star boys from the morning session graciously offered to explain the rules to our group, and even run a second round for us. Our eliminated players laughed and cheered as each player left the circle and joined them on the sidelines.

It had been a brutal program weather and conditions-wise, but I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t one of my favorites of the week. I sat the kids over on the sideline, to gather some feedback before distributing our takehome prizes.

“Did you guys have fun today?” I asked.

“Yes!” they screamed, at the top of their lungs.

“What was your favorite part?” I asked, with a bunch of hands shooting up.

“The 1v1s!” said some of the boys.

“Head, shoulders, knees, and toes,” said one of the girls.

“Head or hands!” said another.

It had been a while since I had run three sessions in one day, not to mention, doing so under the hot Ugandan sun. Our third session was a chill one. The boys earlier, playing ball at a high clip, required higher level instruction, but the students, they were just there to have a good time.

“This one is just chill, pure joy, plenty of laughs,” I said to Mr. Godfrey, with a smile on my face.

He smiled back, thanking me again for choosing New Hope to carry out our programming.

“This place is your home now,” he said.

“And now, we are brothers,” added Coach Nicolas.

The two of them put their hands on my shoulder, affectionately.

“I hope you will come back for their tournament (in July/August time),” said Mr. Godfrey, knowing that the boys had a real shot of leaving as champions.

I could hardly think of anything besides a long, cold shower and an even longer nap. It had been the first day of school, and the kids were buzzing. What a treat it was that they got to wrap their school day up with some fun, football sessions. Apparently, they weren’t the only ones who were excited.

Coach Nicolas had been up since 3 a.m.! He was excited for the kids to come back to school. I hopped in his car and we drove back towards my house, just like we had after the two programming days prior.

“Stephen, next time I’ll take you to Kampala so you can explore it,” he said. “I know a place where we can buy you a full Uganda football kit, with shorts and a top and everything.”

Nicolas had been top-notch ever since day one. Between him and Mr. Godfrey, I had been well taken-care of at the centre.

“Do you already have transportation lined up for the airport?” he asked me, midway through our drive. “I was going to offer to bring you there.”

It was a sweet gesture and one that I surely would’ve acted on, if I didn’t already have a driver. Plus, we had already reached the familiar green gate of my house, and my shower was calling. I dapped Nicolas up and thanked him again for being so kind to me during my time there. He did the same, echoing sentiments of thanks for the time I had spent with the kids.

The day had started at 10 in the morning and ended at 4:30 in the afternoon, but somehow, after three back-to-back-to-back sessions, I still had gas in the tank and energy in my tired, old legs. I showered quickly and headed towards my favorite restobar, just three blocks from my place.

On the way, I couldn’t help but smile, seeing a dozen monkeys climb through the trees above. It had been a jam-packed week, but a successful one thanks to some amazing community partners, and some incredible young athletes.