Somewhere in the noise is a song. Somewhere in the cacophony is a melody—a sweet sound. The ensemble is our attempt to discover the rhythms, the groanings and the eureka moments of life amongst the noise.

Friday, May 25, 2007

Who do you belong to?

Football fans will need scant introduction to Kaka, a Brazillian playing for AC Milan who played a big part in getting his side across the line in the UEFA Champions League final last night against Liverpool. His real name is Ricardo Izecson Santos but Ricardo's little brother couldn't bash out that complicated name and went with Kaka. It stuck.

I opened my Australian this morning to Kaka celebrating AC Milan's win. It's easy to pay out on bumper stickers and anything that makes you squirm...but my hat's off to this guy.

For starters, he's a tidy football player.



And he features a tidy version of Leonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah' that I don't think I've heard before on his website (well, one of his plethora of websites).

Then there's the way he celebrates a goal. From another website: Kaka is a nice guy, very religious, very family man. You can see that he points his fingers to the sky when he scores a goal. He does that to thank Jesus for healing him from a very serious injury that could have ended his football career.

Here's Kaka (I keep wanting to type Kafka, but I'm hanging in there) celebrating last night's win:


And the gear:


Now, I don't know Kaka beyond some websites, a newspaper, the occasional football match and AAP Reuters, but I'd love to hear what a t-shirt like this triggers in you. Spacious?

7 comments:

garrick field said...

two thoughts:

1 - shouldn't we all be wearing this t-shirt - or at least act like we are wearing it? how different would we go about our day, our driving, our meetings etc? i reckon he plays different. He's just saying very loud what we should be all thinking and doing, and shamefully sometimes what we hope others aren't knowing about us.

2 - i hope adidas ain't making money off that.

Simon Elliott said...

Well, we should definitely live out of who we belong to...

The great thing I found as I looked at stuff on the net about Kaka is that his playing reputation and his faith preceded his 'visual proclamation'. If the latter is going to happen then I think he's got the order right.

garrick field said...

let me clarify point 1, by saying that often i suck as a christian. i get mad and i have a problem with authority. i have trouble accepting opinions that don't match mine, i'm not as generous as i should be (shall i keep going?). my actions don't match my t-shirt (another confessions post simon!)

maybe i should run by the screen printers, although in the country i live in the t-shirt could mean i belong to several hundred thousand peruvian men.

Mikey B said...

OK, it was the UEFA Champions League final, the UEFA cup is the 2nd rate competition.

I belong to the Liverpool fans. I have been one since I was 6 years old and I'm sad coz we lost. We played better all game and we still lost as they took their chances.

I belong to the Kaka fan club. This guy is proably the most gifted footballer in the world right now (aside from the divine Chris Judd, more on his holiness later) and is an amazing bloke according to journos, reporters, fellow footballers and coaches. I have followed his career for the last few years and he's great. I think your statement that "'his faith preceded his 'visual proclamation'. If the latter is going to happen then I think he's got the order right." is dead accurate and I rate it.

Garrick, of course Adidas are making money from it. I want that shirt and I bet Adidas will make it for me for the tidy sum of $49.95 or something similar.

I belong to the West Coast Eagles fan club (and now Chris Judd is revealed). Since we are talking about God and footballers, I must remind you all of the two combined. He wears the number 3 for the Eagles and does things that mortals and non deity's cannot even contemplate, let alone do. Tomorrow, watch him glide, run, kick, handpass, tackle, evade, accelerate, break through, mark, score, astound and even possibly fly. I can't guarantee it but Chris might even beat Hawthorn on his own. Here is a man, who while not necessarily belonging to Jesus, brings divinity, God, and Christ to my mind every time I see him play football.

Why is it that God can give Kaka and Judd such breathtaking skills that literally cause a pause in my breathing? Why do they attract me so and cause such worship to flow from me? Why is Chris Judd the most amazing player of all time?

I guess I shouldn't need a shirt. As the first God said in his most recent visit to earth, "They will know you are my disciples by your love for one another" I guess love must be my shirt, let that preceed my advertising/evangelism!

Sorry Simon, I had to bring Judd into it. I've just been blown away by how good he is at the moment.

Anonymous said...

No need to apologise mate. As Eagles 1:16 says: "I am not ashamed of Chris Judd, because he has the power of a god for the joy of everyone who watches him: first for the Eagle, then for the Docker."

Anonymous said...

And Garrick...yeah, sweet - - I hear you.

I also thought the idea of you wearing a t-shirt like this in Peru provided some mirth too. Perhaps it could say 'I belong to Jesus...and I'm with her'

Ka Alencar said...

Kaka is really a wonderful player, and one of the things i like more about him (bside he is a brazilian like me =P), is the way he dont have shame to show to everyone who he belongs to.. Jesus.
Congrat on your blog, is very cool
kiss.. bbye

from Brasil!