The diary lies open in a hand, June arranged across its pages. Beside the prayers are Russia against Saudi Arabia, Egypt against Uruguay, with places and times set out for the matches. Football has a place of its own here.
In May 2018, with the matches still ahead, Rinpoche was already calling for help: Am already stressed.. help!!! A diary could hold quite a lot.
There is little empty space beneath the pages either: boxes, packets, a long tube close to the hand. Before the days can turn, the eye has all these matches to travel between.
A busy June.
Sometimes his enthusiasm for football is written directly on his face. Blue, white and red run across his cheeks and around his mouth. When he smiles, the colours smile with him.
Taking Sides
That was June 2014. He wore a red football shirt; others behind him wore red too. For supporting Chile he had a reason that might not have occurred to everyone: All chilli eaters must root Chile.
Anyone who eats chilli ought to cheer for Chile. Put chilli beside Chile, and a preference of the mouth has found itself a side on the pitch.
A band of white and a band of blue run around the shirt collar. The colours spread across his face. This time his answer to the question of sides is painted on.
There are times when it is the pitch alone that lights up. In Thamel, Kathmandu, he calls it midnight football. The surroundings are dark, with a green field shining from the screen.
Figures run across that small patch of green. Little else can be made out. The game continues.
A Strong Opinion
When the game displeases him, he is not content to be a quiet spectator. At the 2018 final, with France and Croatia on the screen, Rinpoche counts thirteen men on the French side.
France winning with 13 men. It is an irritated spectator’s verdict; even the arithmetic takes a side.
Yet a changing room off the pitch can also hold his attention. A report describes the Japanese team leaving theirs clean, with a note of thanks. It is this small act that wins his approval.
He wants people to see more of it, and to follow the example. Winning makes plenty of noise; he has an opinion, too, about how one leaves a place.
Room in the Courtyard
In a courtyard, football becomes small again. Before a red wall, young monks run after a ball, their robes moving with their legs. No stands enclose them; the windows are set high in the wall.
For Rinpoche, this game is The cup 2. A few words are enough to give the courtyard’s bustle a name of its own.
A courtyard game.
Where the ball goes, the players follow. One stops as another runs on. The red wall is high; the little space beneath it is still enough to keep the game going.
