Cristiano’s First Tears of Joy

Once, not so very long ago, there was an 8-year-old boy named Cristiano. Cristiano was crazy about football. He breathed, ate, and lived football every waking minute he could. When he slept, you guessed it - he dreamed of football.

But he wasn’t an ordinary boy with an ordinary dream. He had a secret: the ball that he’d made out of cloth scraps spoke to him!

The ball had been helping him train for some time now, and he pushed Cris to work very hard at getting his playing skills just right. It had paid off, because he was going to join the local football club, Andorhina. It was the same club his father worked at as a kit man, helping the players with their gear.

Cristiano was really excited in the beginning to be able to play against other people, not just imaginary ones. But he wasn’t prepared for the other boys’ bad treatment. They teased him all of the time.

“Hey, Cristiano! My socks are dirty, why don’t you get your dad to clean them for me?” said one boy with a sneer.

Another one joined in: “Where’s your dirty, raggedy ball? Do you even know how to play with a real one?”

“Nah, he’s too poor to even know how to play. He wouldn’t be on the team if his godfather wasn’t captain,” said a third.

Then everyone laughed. Everyone but Cristiano. After training was over, he ran home and took out his rag ball and ran with it to his favorite practice corner. He had tears in his eyes.

“What’s the matter?" asked the ball with concern.

"It’s nothing!” he said.

The ball gave him a moment until he calmed down.

“You see, I... wait a minute, I don't even…