Starstruck

I don't often get starstruck. That's  because I don't lead a lifestyle where there's an opportunity to brush your shoulder with celebrities every now and then, and when I do get a chance very rarely, I tend to stay calm and not appear overexcited. As a natural instinct, when other people flock around famous people for autographs before and selfies these days, I decided to stay away from mindless adulation. But very rarely comes a moment when you start with meeting someone as a complete stranger, then realise he or she is a superstar, and like them by virtue of how you find them personally, not just through the statistics or the cover pages they were featured on. This was one such instance, when I spent an entire day with Lewis Moody, the Ex-England rugby captain. And I'm admittedly starstruck.

We planned to come to the activity day out arranged by The Brain Tumour Charity. We thought it would be a great opportunity to meet other people in similar situations, and a day out for Sofia. When we left this morning, it was brilliant weather with a spotless sky and a promise of a great day ahead. On the way to Conkers, Jennifer mentioned that the welcome email said the event is also supported by a Lewis Moody Foundation. That name didn't ring any bell to me, and I thought it might be another charity supporting brain tumour causes, named after a patient.

When we finally reached there, at the reception desk, apart from the volunteers of the charity, we were greeted by this very tall man with rippling muscles and a wide smile, as he said, "Hi, I'm Lewis". After sitting down, I wondered if he's the Lewis Moody of the foundation? His physique gave away that he's into sports, and a few rugby balls scattered around the hall confirmed that he's probably  rugby player. But at what level? He looked really young, does he represent a local team? Or someone who played a few odd games as reserve at a bigger level? The terrible 3G coverage made sure that all my attempts to find it out were futile. So Lewis Moody remained a mystery.

But it didn't matter anyway. Throughout the course of the day, we were involved in many activities, and Lewis popped in and out, talking to the families visited. Sofia was already talking to his son, and Lewis wasn't a stranger to her anymore. It was a family day and everybody joined in the activities, participants and organisers alike. Lewis' wasn't any different. We spoke many times during the day, as Sofia enjoyed her rugby session with him, and a bit of friendly skirmish and water splashing during the canoeing — he mingled with us as equals, and my first impression of Lewis being "some" rugby player was transformed into a really nice, energetic and down to earth person. 

The penny dropped after all our activities were finished and we were getting ready for a final photo shoot. A brief look on the phone showed the search results I asked for six hours ago. And I was right on one count, he is a rugby player! And yes, he is "some" rugby player, if that's how you can describe stalwarts, over a decade with the English rugby team with numerous caps, captaining the country, winning member of the Rugby World Cup, an MBE — the credentials were endless. 

But did that make any difference to our experience? It did, only marginally, now that we know his statistics are as fabulous as his demeanour. Coming across a famous sportsperson is rare in our daily life. Meeting someone who is not an arrogant brat is pretty much a MasterCard moment. It's priceless. It's not just us, not many people swooned over Lewis and perhaps that made it easy for him to mingle with the rest as well. When he spoke to the people during the day, one could see that he showed sincere interest in listening to them and participated in the conversation that didn't revolve around rugby at all. It didn't matter what his background was, the fact that he was pleasant and amicable, was reason enough to remember him.

But the realisation that he is someone famous made me reflect on a similar scenario, for which I kept thinking Saturday was my Sharapova moment. For those who don't know, Maria Sharapova said in an interview that she didn't know of Sachin Tendulkar — the prolific Indian cricketer, and Demi-God. Following that, there was a big hoo-ha in India, with everyone demanding apology from Sharapova. Until, of course, Sachin himself spoke out in public that it's perfectly normal for the rest of the world not know about a sport played largely in 12 countries! Now, if you wonder who Sharapova is, I don't blame you, but you must have Google on your device. But the fundamental issue is that there are hundreds and thousands of professional sportspersons with incredible achievements, but it's not possible for people to know every one of them. As much as it's unfair and absurd for the players and their fans to be upset due to this, it is equally unfair expecting people to know and memorise the achievements for every sportsperson.

However, being starstruck didn't mean hankering for autographs and selfies. Lewis Moody chose to devote his time following retirement in his foundation associated with the charities, and it contributed to the successful day out we had. However, it would be extremely ungrateful not to mention the volunteers for The Brain Tumour Charity who arranged the event and made it happen at the first place. They travelled long distance, gave every family a warm and heartfelt welcome and their stories and experiences shared with the others. And the families who attended the event. Having such a major illness and the trauma, the pain, the endless wait to the road to recovery associated with it, can turn anyone's life upside down. It takes great strength to deal with the ailment, and continue with your life, and for this reason, the meet-up turned out to be one amongst the equals, involving people with incredible strength of character on or outside the pitch.

So, why am I not writing about the others? I think it's because not knowing who Lewis was for the entire day was in a way funny. It was about wondering who he was at the beginning, then trying to imagine what level he played at, then forgetting who he was in his professional life altogether and enjoying the day in activities with him and everyone else…and finally, the dawn of the truth. It's also because finding a famous person who is humble and empathetic is rare. And finally, meeting him was a realisation that you can still like someone famous based of their humane qualities rather than what they did in their professional life. And the fact that seeing Lewis and his wife Annie and the other volunteers on the day, Becky, Emma, woman with round glasses, woman with the camera — it made me feel that you can just be the person next door, but you can do extraordinary things.

So, the outcome of meeting Lewis? Firstly, I know now who he is, so that's going into my trivia bank. Secondly, I'm a bit more interested in rugby now than I ever was. And finally, I'll remember the day witnessing the amazing work Lewis Moody Foundation is doing along with other focussed charities to put a smile on people's face. I'll be waiting to see him next time to thank him for his extraordinary work. Am I a fan? Probably not the "mad dog" Moody as I never knew that part of his life, but as a person, I certainly admire him.