After playing basketball for four years I never thought I would have connections overseas and actually get to meet one of my teammates families. But that's exactly what happened. Katerina was a freshman on the team when I was a senior. She was born in Albania but grew up in Greece and came to America to play basketball in high school and in college. When I found out I was going to Albania for the Peace Corps she was one of the first people I contacted to get an inside look of the country.
Katerina's mom is from Tepelene and I happened to be traveling to that town for a cookout that a volunteer was having there. I asked for the first and last names of her relatives before I went and was determined to find them. I walked into a grocery store and asked the clerk if she knew this person, her grandfather, and the clerk made a few phone calls, told them an American was waiting for them and within minutes Katerina's aunt picked me up in their car and took me to their family home where I met her grandma and other relatives. They showed me pictures they had of Katerina, which was really surreal, because most of them were from Peace College where I met and played with her. I gave them a picture of the team and we exchanged stories, as well as we could, about life and hardships.I never thought that I would be able to connect with her family and when I did it was almost like it wasn't happening because it felt so impossible. They were the epitome of Albanian hospitality and warmth. Her grandma kissed me on my forehead as she thanked 'Zot' or God for me and Katerina meeting each other. I returned back to the cook out to tell me Peace Corps friends that I went and met one of my college teammates families and they were dumfounded by how small the world felt at that moment. I'm still kind of in shock of the awesomeness that it was.
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