The Jerseys

My Mexico jerseys have already been washed and placed back in the drawer.

For several weeks, in Mexico and here in Pure Michigan, they were part of the rhythm of my and loved ones’ lives.

Watching the games. Feeling the pride. Carrying Mexico with me from Mexico back home. Remembering the mercados, the green and black jerseys, the family energy, and that feeling you get when a team gives people a reason to believe together as a country.

Then the run ended. I felt the sting. And life kept moving.

The World Cup is still going. Argentina is still in it. Spain is still in it. Other countries are still carrying their flags, songs, hopes, and people into the next round.

And my Mexico jerseys will probably come out a few more times this summer. Even the official green jersey one with my name on it custom ordered and to be delivered next week!

Not because Mexico is still playing, but because I want to remember the joy. I want to feel the pride again. I want to honor how far they went and what it felt like to watch them carry so much hope.

There is something personal about seeing my name resting there with Mexico.

Pride. Memory. Belonging. A little heartbreak. And a reminder that identity is not only something we wear when the team is winning.

Maybe that is part of what many of us as Hispanic leaders are always learning.

We carry a lot. We carry family, language, sacrifice, ambition, loyalty, expectation, and the quiet pressure to represent more than just ourselves.

Some of that motivates us. Some of it gives us purpose. Some of it can also get heavy if we do not know when to fold the pride, bless it, and place it somewhere safe.

Porque pride needs a place to rest too.

At some point, the jerseys will rest in the drawer. The noise will quiet down. The games will end. And we’ll have returned to the ordinary work of leading our lives with dignity.

Not less proud. Not less passionate. Just steadier.

The pride stays in the heart, and we keep walking forward, steady and with purpose.

My Auténtico Self™