Thank you, Leicester

They said you can’t win anything with this manager.

They said you can’t win against the biggest clubs in the world.

They said you can’t win with non-league players in your team.

That you can’t compete at the highest level with this budget.

That your winning chances are the same as chances of Elvis being alive.

That eventually you’ll falter and return to the bottom.

That it’s just a dream and will never be a reality.

That it’s time to be logical and not be romantic about this.

They said it’s impossible.

Everyone listened to them.

Everyone believed in them.

Except you.

You didn’t care.

You just let the results talk.

You put your head down and worked hard.

You exhibited day in and day out how much you wanted it.

And in the end, you showed the world that fairy tales do exist.

That miracles still happen.

That if you really want something, you don’t have to worry about “them”.

You just have to go and get it.

For a team like you to come and take the giants on with their wealth and experience – not only take on but to beat them – it’s the biggest thing to happen in any sport.

Congratulations Leicester City on winning the league, and thank you. You captured the imagination of the sporting world and beyond with your display of courage and never-give-up attitude.

You have given everyone hope.

The romance is not dead.

Hey younger self

I was asked: if I could go back in time what would I say to my younger self?

I sat thinking.

So many things ran across my mind. I saw my younger self getting hurt and breaking his bones (literally). I would put my hands on his shoulder and help him get up and tell him everything will be fine. I would tell him keep doing what you’re doing, you’re going to have lots of stories to tell when you grow up.

I’d explain to him why every decision that went against him and every “unlucky” moment in his life was actually a good thing. How every problem would become a story. How every person he loved and lost would contribute to who he would become.

I’d tell him to keep looking forward.

To not dwell on his past.

To keep doing what he likes to do and not listen to others.

To not wait and ask her out already.

To say yes to more opportunities.

To not give a shit about unnecessary expectations.

To stop wasting time and learn something instead.

But then I pause. I think of how knowing all this ahead of time instead of experiencing it himself would be of less use to him.

If he wasn’t lost, he wouldn’t know what he needed to find.

So now I know.

If I go back, I would tell him nothing.

Because every problem, every fear, every emotion deeply felt by him would lead him to me.