Ahoj! We are settling in here at the Basket Academy in Prague. We have improved our Czech speaking skills, we are suffering from sore muscles we didn't even know we had, and our rooms are starting to be infiltrated by the smell of sweat! Most importantly training with Team Sparta is going great. We have filled the gym with encouragement and laughter, while also working extremely hard! As one of my teammates, Sarah Russell, put it, we truly are living out Paul's description of "suffering for the gospel". Many of us on the team are now retired and are simply enjoying this opportunity to once again play the game we love. But to the girls here who are playing for a paycheck, our hard work and positive attitude is hard to understand. Some of us have had the opportunity to explain this to the Czech girls and begin to reveal to them the reason for our JOY. The team has been extremely grateful for our presence in their training and continue to comment on our positive attitudes. Many of the older women on the team have shared with us how completely different this pre-season training has been than any other year. We pray that the motivation for our behavior would be revealed to them. Outside of training, we have been inviting the team out to dinner with us after practice. Over ten girls joined us for dinner tonight! We played fun games and shared jokes with each other. It has become clear that American humor is not quite the same as Czech humor! Pray for continued laugher and safety, but also that we would be bold and intentional in our conversations this week. Cau!
Kelsey Keizer
PS Dobrá Práce means Good Job in Czech!