Is failing ever an option? It depends on what you class as failure. It’s always a possibility to me, but failure to me is stopping trying, giving up, failing to be kind, not living up to my values….I believe in people lifting people, and I’m hard on myself if I don’t lift someone. I’m not hard on myself for trying something and not being able to do it, but I am conscious of how I treat people. I try and learn from any time I don’t help someone out – that to me is where I think I’ve failed.
When have you felt the most vulnerable? Hurricane Katrina – wow, there’s a lot I could write about this, and a lot I haven’t even said to the people I love. The basic version is I am super passionate about my city, our values and our community – and I believe in lifting people up and helping. And then….our government left our people to die, and I was stuck helpless in Australia….you can draw your own conclusions from that…
What would I tell my 8 year old self?
Dear Becca Hay – WAKE UP! SPARKLE AND SHINE!!!! Hi, it’s future you! I wanted to say firstly the values, morals and beliefs you have already are going to hold you in good stead – you care, you really care, the way you befriend those in need of a friend is wonderful. Keep your voice, keep your ego, and never stop trying – community is everything, you will work that out. Oh, and you know how you love the ads more than the shows? There’s a career in that! AMAZING! Now go steal Dads nose and give him some of that summin summin – love BH
Biggest sacrifices made? Man, moving to Australia for career for nearly two decades. I can’t live in duality unfortunately, and a 1 year work visa turned into a much longer stay. I missed good times and bad in New Orleans, I missed the Gleason block, I missed the suffering, but I missed prime years of my family. I did that to set up a retirement that I dream of, but I gave up my own community to do that, and I feel selfish about it sometimes. I want to live my life paying family and community back.
Who is the most powerful woman in your life? Brooke? No, that was just for Belinda, ha ha – my Mom, easily. My Mom told me when I was 4 that I was to treat every person with kindness. She is a strong wonderful woman, and the way she takes on social causes is amazing. I feel sometimes I should tell her I love her more since Dad and I have football and all our hootin’ and hollerin’, but she knows….
Is equality within reach? Nope, not even close, but sporting equality is a generation away, which is pretty mindblowing. I believe in my soul THOSE people won’t see it coming. Think of those 10 year olds and their opportunities in the next 20 years. Social equality? Not even close, there’s lot of battles ongoing…I’m proud that we keep our voice and our fight though.
Any regrets in your journey? Not really, I love my job, I love my hootin’ and hollerin’ – I do wonder if I should have been there more for family instead of chasing a career, and if I should have been there to help my community during Katrina, but I don’t have full regrets, there’s nothing I desperately wish changed (except the 2010 Grand Final….and the Rams game….and that game we lost to the Browns….where was I again?)
What did the ‘Yes’ vote mean to you? Relief – I’ll never forgive Turnbull for putting those people through that plebiscite and the hatred they endured from the sanctimonious. Just to feel relief that it was over, I guess that was my prime feeling. To me, even when I was little, I thought it was insane there were marriage laws – them being changed felt natural to me….
What do you say to people who rubbish women’s sport? You won’t see it coming 😇
Can you remember a time when you challenged the status quo? Don’t I do that every day? Well I try to – I’ve been talking to Belinda about when I was 14, I got a bad mark for a creative writing project and emotively ripped the whole school a new one for marking writing like math. I also work in a job that requires endless, ENDLESS challenging of the status quo. I’d say one I’m most proud of is I wrote a blog piece that pointed out the lack of marketing and PR attention in AFLW that I genuinely believe changed the conversation and tone of what was going on. That’s a cage I’m always proud of rattling.
What does it mean to be loved? So when I was 5, I remember Mom and Dad took me driving in the car, and we went down to a lake, and Mom had Francoise Hardy on the tape deck and we sat as a family by the edge of the water, and we just laughed, and I don’t know what I was laughing at, but I remember feeling like nothing could hurt me, even at that age, and like the world was ours and ours alone- that’s what being loved is….
What do you hope for future women and girls? That they can be themselves without being judged
Bonus Question:
What does AFLW mean to you? It’s a community with unique humor, untapped potential, and true genuine values. It’s authenticity is everything to me. It’s a woman eating a burrito. It’s crying when a team you didn’t give a hell about 24 hours early lose. It’s supporting the Giants for random reasons….it’s life….
Niksterisms view of the world 