One afternoon while on the Iris base, I took the Wiffle ball bat and balls I had brought over to the boys dorms to play some Wiffle ball. After humoring me for a bit with my American game, some of the boys taught me their version of baseball, which they called “Circular.” It was touching to see how they wanted to include me and make sure I felt welcome to play.
At first I was put in a position to succeed – they put me on a team that was clearly superior. However, after I showed that I could hold my own, I was traded to the lesser team – it felt good to be treated like one of the boys. One boy in particular, whose name was Jaimetu (sp) kept checking on me to make sure I was having a good time and knew where to be in the field. It was a great feeling to have the roles somewhat reversed. I felt it was important on this trip to have a true exchange with the local people – a give and take that I experienced through “Circular.” ~Charles