Snow, Culture and Football

Okay, I'll get the weather report out of the way first. Brrrrrrrr!!!! We have had a cold front move into northern Europe which has dropped our high temperatures about 10°C which, for example gives us a high of 1° and a low of 0°. Like I said: Brrrrrrrr! (Forcast for Tuesday: 0 to minus 5°) Yesterday, as we waited for the bus in Basel to come back to Weil am Rhein, the wind was just right to cut through my four layers of clothing (plus the handsome hand-made wool scarf Delynn knitted for me) and chill me right to the bone. We decided it was finally time to turn on our radiators a bit. I normally don't have such issues with the cold, but I think for me it has been the rapid change from the rather mild 8-10° down to freezing. We did get a little snow overnight so as I walked to catch the train to church this morning (I leave earlier when I lead the music worship), the roads were clear, the sky was cloudy with patches of beautiful blue, a light dusting of white covered the rooftops and trees. It was a glorious walk and a wonderful preparation for worship.

Meanwhile, during November at RIA, we have been celebrating the many diverse cultures of our students and staff. Each Monday, we have held an assembly (essentially a circle of children in the atrium of the school) and students from a class have shared something special about their culture. A student from Spain showed her special dress and castenets that are a part of her family's culture in Barcelona. Two of our 1st grade Swiss students shared about different things they like about their Swiss culture.

The first above is showing off her father's Fasnacht mask and piccolo that are part of his traditional Morgenstreich costume. Morgenstreich starts at 4am to usher in the Fasnacht celebration. Here is our entry from last year's Fasnacht. The first-grader below is showing off the puzzle she uses to learn about the Swiss Kantons (or states).

As mentioned last week, we went to the Basel-Zürich football match on Sunday after church. This was our first stadium football match and we were a bit surprised to find a contingent of riot police acting as blockers between the Basel fans arriving by tram on one side of the stadium and the visiting Zürich fans arriving by train on the other. The St. Jakob Stadium has a train platform bordering one side of the arena so that fans can travel directly to the game. Pretty good thinking actually...

We were seated in the "normal" section - this is about 80% of the stadium - the place where most people sit. We had a mainly Basel supporters around us and a few sporting the blue and white of Zürich, but then again, we were in Basel. Here, the families and fans could sit together in relative harmony, each cheering for their side without acrimony. You can see Delynn below in our section of the stadium sitting next to Joél - he was an exchange student from Zürich that lived in Canada with our friends and fellow teachers Cam and Jen.

There were special fan sections at opposite ends of the stadium from which the more rabid supporters could sing their FCB (Football Club Basel) and FCZ anthems and taunt each other from a safe distance. These folks really like their football - they bring huge flags and all wear the team colors in support of their side. They hang signs and chant in unison - I don't know how much of the game they actually see, what with those big flags blocking their view. It might be hard to see, but in the picture below, the fans are waving flags and holding their FCB scarves out above their heads in support of the home team.

One thing that we found rather comical and quite polite was the process by which each of the Baseler team members were intoduced. On the Jumbo-tron screen at each end of the staduim, a player would appear, the announcer would introduce the player using his first name and the stadium would erupt crying out the player's last name. It would sound like: (announcer) Michael - (crowd) JORDAN! This went on for each player on the team which of course the Baslers' well knew. At the end of his announcements, the announcer says: Danke Schön! (Thank you!) to which the 30,000 strong croud responds in unison BITTE SCHÖN! (You're Welcome!).

Basel went up 1:0 at the 15 minute mark with a penalty kick after a foul. The fan zone at the end of the stadium lit up with cheers, songs and unfortunately highway flares. Flares are banned as they are quite dangerous, but a few always manage to smuggle them in. The flags waved, the fans sang - it was a pretty cool sight.

Frankly, it was a good thing that Basel got the goal because Zürich is rated #1 in the league for offense and Basel is rated #1 for defense. It was a very fast and aggressive game with a half dozen yellow cards given equally among the teams. From my point of view, Zürich were playing a much better game and they eventually tied it up 1:1 with a rather spectacular goal and that is how it ended. For me, this was probably the best ending we could want. Each team gets a point in the league standings and there tends to be fewer issues after a tie game. Unfortunately, as we left, Joél, still wearing his blue and white striped Zürich scarf, was hasseled by a few FCB fans. Joél, believing that discretion is the better part of valor, quickly relieved himself of his scarf and put it in his bag to defuse the situation. It seems a bit sad to me that there are so many to which sports can cause such a visceral reaction - it is just a game people! There are so many more important things in life.

I hope that this week you find those important things in life. That you experience glimpses of God's glory, love, grace and mercy. Take a risk - reach out to someone and share yourself. See what good things can happen.