Only the romantic and faint-hearted may proceed.
You've been warned.
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Dear Arwind,
I am not your Number One fan, and I will not claim to be so,
because I am not.
I am a Jaworski fan since birth, and I followed the careers
of Padim Israel, Totoy Marquez, Alvin Patrimonio, Allan Caidic, Yves Dignadice,
Bong Alvarez, to the point of dragging my poor late father to ULTRA, Rizal
Memorial, and Reyes Gym, to name a few, to be able to see them in person, take their photos, and get their
autographs.
Fast forward. You came at a time when I was looking for
somebody (and for a new PBA team) to love again. I fell in love with Petron Blaze Boosters and
yes, with you. Never mind if your love life was colorful and controversial. Never
mind if you came from a rival university. Never mind if Petron is SMB
and I came from the never-say-die barangay, from the other side of the fence.
All these came in one whole package.
I find you a simple man with simple dreams, but rose to fame
and fortune through hard work, patience, determination and talent. I followed you in Twitter, subscribed to your
Facebook fan pages, and watched all your TV guestings. My love was put to a
test when the Balkman-choking incident happened. You came out of it humble and
forgiving, and I was all the more convinced I found the right man. I was not
wrong in choosing you.
My Spiderman, I am one of the happiest fans when you won MVP
in the PBA 2012-2013 season, edging out crowd favorite El Teniente LA
Tenorio. I am also one of those who were
hurt when bashers and haters came out, saying you are undeserving of the
much-coveted title. Statistics won’t lie. You won fair and square. But they
simply won’t accept that. In the two conferences wherein Petron lost, it was
you they were blaming. Come on, basketball is a team sport. But you, the MVP, were
the culprit, they say.
The “Trade Arwind” movement and the “Petron
Post-Mortem” story hit me the most. Trade Santos, they cry out. They call
you the Missing MVP. They accuse you of
stat-collecting during eliminations, only to fade out, carried through the air
like a spider, come finals or crunch time. It’s as
if a championship is all up to one man – you. Spiderman po siya, hindi si Superman. They even questioned your PSA
Award. Why, did you even ask for that? When you placed 2nd to
JuneMar in the last BPC Award, they demanded for an explanation why media votes
went your way. Pati ba yun? Ano ba naman, saan ka ba talaga lulugar? They want
your head. They don’t see (and will never see) what we see in you. They want to
believe what they want to believe. And they will always look the other way when
you play well and deliver the goods. What have you done to them to deserve
this? #smh I will never understand.
You don’t have to listen to me. But if I may, please
continue to be good in what you are doing. You are there for a reason. “With
great power comes great responsibility.” There are
people who still believe in you. You are a good man, and “When evil men destroy, good men must build
and bind.” It’s up to you to listen to critics or to ignore your detractors.
If they’re better than you are, then why are they not in PBA? Those bellyachers
should have been in your position. But perhaps, you could learn a thing or two
from those
who mean well, and from people who are objective and genuinely concerned.
I am not your Number One fan, and I will not claim to be so, because I am not. But as a fan, my love and support (young as it may be) are stronger than all their hatred put together. I will be there not only during your winning moments, but also in your darkest hours. If only I could have Bela Cullen’s vampire power, I would be your shield. I would shield you from all hurt, harshness, and harm. So you can go on doing what you do best - play and contribute to the greatness of your team.
God bless you and your family.
Yours,
TheGoodGirl
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