Hey.. the Ball is White Too

I love playing volleyball.

Tonight Sean and I met up to go play some volleyball down in Orem. He described the event as being a bunch of Polys who meet and play ball once a week. And when we arrived at the church near Center in Orem, I should not have been surprised to see Polys. Sean was still in the bathroom, and I walked into the gym. I scanned the faces of the players, and saw a bunch of large, grinning and sweaty Polynesians playing volleyball on two courts.

In a moment of racial timidness, I walked out and decided to get a drink while waiting for Sean. When he came out of the bathroom, we walked in together.

We were definitely the only pale-skinned individuals in the room. Man. I wished I were tanner. But my escapades in Huntington Beach less than a week ago hadn't made my skin dark enough to blend in.

The games were fun, and I got a few good hits and serves and dives. But I still was probably as good as one of the younger Poly girls.

My favorite were the guys in 7X tshirts who weighed about 7 times as much as I do, who could still contribute to their team... granted their sphere of influence extended only about a foot beyond their girth.

I think the highlight of the evening came during the last game. The setter got a good pass, and set the ball high in my direction. I began my approach, and some guy on my team yelled "Hit it white boy!" but with a Samoan accent. As I hung in the air and prepared to swing, I heard the others on the court start big Polynesian chuckles, and I knew the pressure was on. The blockers blocking me were shorter or squattier than I was, but they weren't making it easier. I swung with a strong cross-court hit. The ball deflected off the fingers of one of the blockers and careened toward one of the opposing players who was unable to control a pass off her upper arm, and the ball flew out.

I was lucky. Most of the time I get nervous, the big hits end up in the net. This time it went over. Point us.

I landed with a big grin and got fives from all of my Poly team members. The rest of the evening was fun, and although I still wasn't as good as some of the Poly girls, some of my new friends gave me some good sets and I had a blast.