Why I Refuse To Take My Flag Down

First of all, I'd like to thank those who were rooting against Brazil for not sending me insensitive texts/messages. A lot of people don't get how devastating it is for a Brazilian to watch their country lose a soccer game so tragically in their own home. So I'm grateful for those of you who cheered me up or who refrained from being jerks. As for the rest of you, I hope you buy some sunscreen and join Zúñiga at the same unpleasant place I told him to go to... :D (Oh yes, I did).

Those of you wondering how I'm doing, I'm heartbroken. I'll admit that I wasn't sure if Brazil would win or lose today. But during the first five to ten minutes of the game where Brazil was on fire, I was positive Brazil would win. But as soon as Germany scored the first goal, I was shocked. I still had hopes that Brazil would eventually catch up and beat them. There goes the second goal. There, we're done. Again, I was shocked. But this time, I had less hopes of Brazil's victory. Third goal came along -- I thought (and hoped) it was just a bad dream. I couldn't believe it! I'm sure at that point the players' self-esteem went down to sub-basement, which affected their focus and thus their performance. I don't blame them; they were under shock and a lot of pressure. I wasn't angry at the game though, which is unusual for me. Not once! Just sad. Then the 4th and 5th... yeah, we were DONE!

At that point I just stopped paying attention to the game and chatted with my friends. When the 6th and 7th came along, I didn't even care. I guess you could say sticks and stones, baby! To contradict what I said earlier about not being angry, I was pissed at the arrogance the players demonstrated though, which is totally biased by my sore loserness. They were at 4 and relentlessly aimed for the goal, like kicking a dead dog. And when the goalie was mad over that one goal Brazil scored? I was pissed. I understand you have to be ambitious and all of this is totally blinded by my emotions, but if I did something that would benefit me at someone else's expense, I'd do it until I had what I needed. Once I reached my basic necessities, I wouldn't ambitiously prevent that other person from getting some necessities. Again, this is SUPER biased (and somewhat communist) -- but that's how I felt at the time.

After the game, I decided not to wash off my makeup or to take my Brazilian-themed shirt off. Why? Because I wanted to show the public (and myself) that I'm still proud to be Brazilian -- that my patriotism isn't determined by the number of goals Brazil scores in the World Cup. My patriotism is determined by me. Not Julio Cesar, Neymar's spine, Dilma's incompetence or dishonesty; no, it is determined by me. It's up to me how much I will love and stand by my country. To be patriotic doesn't mean you're 100% satisfied with the way your country is at the moment; it means you'll do whatever it takes to make your country a desirable and better place, because you love and believe in it. A good parent would never walk out on a child for being imperfect (the way a lot of Brazil fans left the stadium as soon as Brazil started to lose); no, they will love that child unconditionally and will patiently try to correct that child. A good parent would never stop believing in a child just because that child makes mistakes.

I remember last summer when Brazil had those protests against the government. It reminded me of a meme I saw which said, "I don't work out because I hate my body; I work out because I love my body!" -- that's the same with the protests: "I don't protest against the government because I hate Brazil; I protest against the government because I love Brazil!". I believe in Brazil's potential; I truly believe that if our country was run by competent and honest politicians, give it some years and we're on our way to become a first-world country. That is why I root for Brazil; because I believe in it. And my belief in it is all that I will allow to affect my love and pride for it.

Another reason why I kept my Brazil look is cuz my makeup looked awesome! Here's some pictures:

 

  

But of course there's pro's and con's with keeping my Brazil look -- a couple strangers talked to me about the game. This one guy smiled and said, "Hahaha! What happened to Brazil today?"
Offended, I said, "I don't wanna talk about it."
He laughed then said, "Man, 7x1. BOOM! HAHAHAHAHA"
A-hole, I know. I should've said, "When Canada actually makes it to the World Cup and beats Brazil, come talk to me." But I didn't because I didn't come up with that witty answer til after he was gone.

Later I went out for wings with the boys. They really cheered me up and made me laugh! We took selfies, we laughed, we chatted, and had a blast. Martley's date Aaron was there too but successfully avoided pictures:

 

Another encounter I had with strangers regarding my apparel was after wings a guy said, "sorry about your loss".
Sad and tired of sarcasm, I said, "Yeah I cried" hoping he'd take the hint that I'm a sore loser and unable to laugh at any remark he was planning to make.
To my surprise, he said some very kind and encouraging words to me. Then his mom gave me a tight prolonged hug then looked me in the eye (her face was about 2 inches away from mine) and stroked my face and told me it was okay. I was more uncomfortable over the fact that a stranger was touching my face than comforted, but I guess it's the thought that counts!

But despite the sadness and shock, I'm still proud to be Brazilian. I'm not ashamed of our team or my beautiful 5-star country (just the government, which will hopefully change in a few months)! I'll always root for Brazil in all aspects -- sports, economy, leadership, education, health care, morality, opportunity, growth, etc. And let's face it: although Germany had a 7:1 goal ratio today, I'm sure Brazil has a 7:1 hot girl ratio forever.

And hey, there's definitely things I learned today:

1. Humility: Maybe Brazil isn't the best in soccer, and I should allow fans of other countries to express their love for their teams without beaking them.
   
2. Unconditional love: The way Brazilian fans reacted to Brazil's loss taught me what unconditional love is (and isn't).
   
3. True patriotism: I'll admit that before this particular cup, I never considered myself patriotic. But hearing the national anthem being sung at the first game against Croatia changed things up for me, and I couldn't help but love my country. After its loss, I found that I still loved it deeply. Somehow I learned to love Brazil for the right reasons this cup.
   
4. Sportsmanship: I learned to be nice to rival fans and players, whatever the outcome may be (or at least started to learn that it's improtant to be nice).