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The Miami Sound Machine

Writer's picture: Jared DeyJared Dey

When it comes to these blogs you’ll notice one of the biggest themes is how sports blends into my Visual Bucket List journey.


There’s a reason for that. From a very young age sports surrounded my life, if there was a ball, a bat, or a helmet involved I was all in and that never changed. Now though sports aren’t just my life it’s the link between a life with vision and a life without it. Because a love of the game doesn’t fade when your eyesight does. 


Recently, I got to make another sports memory when I got to experience a Miami Heat versus San Antonio Spurs game. When the Heat were traveling here to Texas.


The Miami Heat are my favorite NBA team and have been since June 26, 2003. The reason I know that date is because that is the moment the Heat drafted a 6 foot 4 shooting guard out of Marquette named Dwayne Wade. When everyone clambered for a young phenom named LeBron in that draft I was a Wade guy and never looked back. 


I followed the team through the years, learned the history, rooted on every aspect of Heat Culture. Though, I never attended a game in Miami or on a road trip.


With my vision steadily changing, I wanted to change that. I wanted to witness my team in action. And with their lone trip to San Antonio approaching I took a chance and shared my journey with a gentleman with the Heat named Steve. 


Steve learned about me and aligned me with another person within the Heat named Michael. Between the two of them they made it happen and there I was on track to make a Miami Heat memory. 


As Karina in her Spurs jersey and me in my Heat gear made our way to our seats given to us by Steve and Michael. I realized one thing, this game was going to be different. My vision was cloudy, the lights were bright. I began to worry how would I get to understand all what was going on if I couldn’t follow along 100% visually. 


But there was a way, I noticed and that was sound.


The sound of my wife, the sound of a young Heat fan in a Jaime Jaquez Jr jersey that sat in front of me and the in arena announcer. I may have not known the score the whole time or which players had the ball at a certain times. But the fandom of that young kid who cheered on the Heat like I did at his age and the the sound of my wife and other Spurs fans clapping kept me in the moment of how the game was going. 


Watching games can be a challenge I’ve known that for awhile but as my vision continues to change and get worse. This game showed me sound is my friend, sound is my connection, sound is my blessing.


I’m so thankful for Steve and Michael in the Heat organization for giving me this opportunity. Hopefully next time I can take in a game in Miami, but if that day never comes that’s okay too. Cause I got to make this memory, a memory with my amazing wife, and my long lasting Heat fandom. 



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