Can't believe it

Can’t believe it:

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Can’t believe it.

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The Canadian men’s soccer team.

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Made a semi-final of an international tournament.

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They just got a new coach a month ago.

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He coached his 6th game.

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Now they’re in the semi-finals of Copa America.

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But that’s not even the craziest part for me.

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Quick story.

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Rewind over a decade.

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I was a young man in Scotland.

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Fresh out of Canada and moved to St. Andrews, Scotland for university.

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Made a bunch of international friends and what did we bond over?

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Football.

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Or soccer for the North Americans.

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We bonded over the beautiful game.

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I grew up a Liverpool fan.

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Had friends who were United fans, Arsenal fans and Madrid fans.

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But all of us loved Leo Messi.

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This was his heyday.

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God’s son descended on the earth.

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The man was unstoppable.

Scored 91 goals in a season.

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Do you understand how insane that is?

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This guy was and still is a god.

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So I told my friends in St. Andrews that I would love to see Messi play live before he retires.

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Kobe was my hero growing up.

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Saw him a few times when he came to Toronto.

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But in any other sport, Messi was the only other athlete I wanted to see.

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Even looked into flying to Barcelona to watch a match.

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Then I forgot about it.

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Life moved on.

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All of a sudden last year, I found out that Copa America is in the US.

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So my dad and looked into getting tickets.

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Originally we wanted final tickets.

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See the best two teams play in Miami.

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But they were coming out too late.

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The semis were available in New York.

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We thought why not.

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We have a place to stay.

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Been to New York a bunch.

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Let’s do it.

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So we fortunately got 6 tickets the day it came out.

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One for him and I, and then a bunch for the rest of the family.

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We’re all sitting around a dinner table a month ago when the rest of our family says ‘sell our tickets.’

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They didn’t want to go.

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So we did.

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Then I found out that the Group A vs. B semifinal was in New York.

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That’s the group Argentina and Canada are in.

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Argentina easily got through the group.

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Meanwhile, Canada struggled through.

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But they made it.

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Scored 1 goal in 3 games but pulled off huge results against Chile and Peru, two nations with a rich soccer history.

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Canada is all of a sudden in the quarterfinal against Venezuela.

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Argentina goes first.

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Tough match but they get by Ecuador on penalties.

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It means we’re seeing Messi.

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This dream I had for over a decade is finally coming through.

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I get to see the greatest soccer player ever in probably his last ever International tournament.

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That was all I wanted.

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But then today happens.

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CANADA DOES IT.

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They beat Venezuela in penalties.

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And they’re in the semi-final in New York.

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Watching my country play one of my favourite players.

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Couldn’t have dreamt it any better.

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The lesson I’ve learned is this.

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Put it out there.

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Your dreams.

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Tell someone.

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Write it down.

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Make it verbal.

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Then wait.

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It may never come true.

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Or you may experience a life that is even better than what you imagined.

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Anything is possible.

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I still can’t believe it.

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