Forget cheerleaders. We've got 10 drummers, 30 dancers and one unstoppable Fans Club to cheer on the sports. Members of the Fans Club were at the University Games in Dschang to energize their athletes, catch the attention of the judges and also to put on a good show for the spectators. Every school that participated sent their own Club, and they were on the field much longer than any athlete. They spent hours everyday (during that week) on their feet, swaying to the rhythm, beating drums and performing quick, fast-footed cultural dances. They ran around, energized the crowd and then paraded around the entire campus like it was Mardi Gras.
2011 was the first year that the students represented the University of Bamenda and participated in the annual University Games in Dschang. I was filled with pride, ownership (I'm with these guys, this is my school) and a sense of je-ne-sais-quoi... that burning inside your stomach when you witness someone fighting so hard and waiting so long, and they finally get it. This was it. Our school became a university, and we finally had a team. We were all in good spirits, and completely fraught with anticipation... (or maybe, it really was just me, haha). Regardless, nothing like sports can bring people together like that. We even took home two bronze medals in judo. Bravo.
"Our fulfillment is not in our isolated human grandeur, but in our intimacy with the larger earth community, for this is also the larger dimension of our being..."
- Thomas Berry
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