Wednesday, November 18, 2015

My first interview with “Michael Calvert"

If you have not read my previous blog titled “Do you know Michael Calvert?,” please do so first as it would help you enjoy today’s blog even more.
 
I went to Burnaby Lake last Friday to watch a high school playoff game featuring the defending champion South Delta Sun Devils, which Michael belongs to as an outstanding player, against the Mt. Boucherie Bears. I must say the game was one of the most exciting and unpredictable games I have ever watched. Even if you didn’t watch the game but see the final score (59-49 for South Delta), you can probably see why it was so exciting.
 
As long as I watched the game, both teams were extremely close in terms of their level of play. In other words, I think the Bears would have a chance to win the game if they played again. However, why did South Delta win on Friday? Is it just luck? “NO”. In my opinion, it is thanks to the superstar Michael, who read the flow of the game and helped lift the team from what a possible loss to a win with his spectacular performance. In fact, when Bears had an amazing comeback from down 18 points at one point, I think most spectators would have expected Bears to win the game. But, all the members of South Delta never gave up and soon regained the lead because it seemed everybody relied on Michael and believed he would lead them to winning the game. As a result, he got involved in the almost all important situation to score and South Delta was able to come from behind and win the game in the end.
 
The most important thing to win each game, I think, is to have that superstar player who can dominate. When I belonged to a soccer team, we had a superstar like Michael who never gave up in the face of adversity. I remember one time he led us to a miracle win by scoring three goals near the end. From that point, we were overwhelmed by him and would count on him all the time. In addition, he motivated us to practice hard because we wanted to support and catch up with him. Do you know why?? These types of players like Michael and my teammate have strong but friendly personalities and lead by example.
 
I was able to interview Michael after the game, which was the first time I have ever done an interview in English. I thought it would be easy because I have had a lot of experience giving public speeches and presentations in front of people in the past. However, the moment it started, I felt extremely nervous and then almost gave up interviewing him. But, Michael is very friendly and understood my feelings and situation. After a while, I calmed down and managed to finish my first interview even though my interview skills were still huge gap compared to my supervisor, Daniel, and coworker, Michiko. I cannot thank you enough for his heart-warming personality. Without him, I could not have challenged myself and gained the sense of satisfaction.
Post-game interview with South Delta QB Michael Calvert
Of course, the final video looks very smooth. However, it took a few tries before to get there. Check out the blooper reel here.
If you remember, I said my ultimate goal is to contribute to the Tokyo Olympics taking place in 2020. Thanks to the amazing experience I’ve had this week, I have had another vision. I hope one day to interview Michael again, but not as a high school player but when he becomes an amazing professional player one day. I hope Michael has a similar vision too.
 
I have learned from my time here at Football BC to not give up my dreams even if I encounter the adversity. Watching Michael, I can see how hard he tries all the time even though sometimes it can be challenging and sometimes failure happens.
 
I live by the belief that all my efforts will pay off as long as I do my best. I want to say thank you again to Michael.
 
Finally, let me give some advice to those who are not native English speakers or are studying a second language and are afraid of making mistakes and speaking because of improper accent and embarrassment. In my case, I have not met people who talk with me in Japanese since I joined Football BC. Of course, I sometimes feel so frustrated that I cannot make myself understood in English. But everybody I met so far is so friendly and helpful and then, they try to understand my situation and the great deal of effort it takes for me to speak. So if you struggle to learn second language, take initiative like I did, which will help you learn new things. Let’s hang in there together. I believe we can do it.
 
Thank you so much for reading the blog. I am going to update a new blog written about my first business trip named “KamLuke” (You will be able to understand the meaning next week). I hope you look forward to reading it. Have a great day.
 
NOTE: If you are interested in the next Michael's game or other high school playoff, I highly recommend you go to BC place because you can watch five games in one price.
The price and schedule are as follow:
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21
General admission - $15
Free for kids 12-and-under
AA:
10 am – Vernon Panthers vs Langley Saints
12:30 pm – Holy Cross Crusaders vs GW Graham Grizzlies
AAA:

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