Love Tennis

Love Tennis

Yesterday I went to Salvador tennis center to play with my good friends Eddie and Rob. It was 4pm and not too hot. We alternated hitting two against one (not points, just hitting). Then Claudio showed up unexpectedly (he had been very busy in his restaurant recently, so we hadn’t seen much of him). A Cuban chef, a Cuban cigar manufacturer, a retired Swiss banker, a retired English philosopher; age range from 54 (Claudio) to 76 (Colin). So, now four of us were hitting together in perfect harmony—encouraging each other, laughing, whacking the ball, all playing well. This went on for a solid hour with no breaks, because we were all enjoying it so much. I thought: this the way life should be; this is the way human relationships should be. Love tennis. No hate, no rivalry, no racket smashing (no American). It was a far cry from politics (national and academic), Trump, cancellation, crap.