A Father First: How My Life Became Bigger Than Basketball (49 page)

Mom was right—I get crazy giddy when I’m happy. And this is one of my happiest days, after the Miami Heat won the 2006 NBA championship and I won MVP.

By John W. McDonough/Sports Illustrated/Getty Images.

The thrill of competing on behalf of my country at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing and helping Team USA reclaim the gold medal will always be a highlight of my career.

By Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE/Getty Images.

Me and my mini-me at the Central Park Zoo in New York City. No matter what city we’re in, visiting local zoos and museums is one of my favorite father-son activities—or as we call it, “Man Time.”

By Bob Metulus Images.

(
Left to right:)
Tragil, me, Mom, and my niece Myanna Lockhart. We’re holding up our hands to show five and five because we’re having a big party in honor of Mom’s fifty-fifth birthday. Every year in November, my mother flies out from Chicago to Miami for her birthday and every year she looks younger!

By Bob Metulus Images.

Like I always say, if I could live my childhood over, I’d be Zaire Wade. At his tenth birthday party, we pause for a family portrait. (
Left to right:)
Zaire, me, Grandmama Jolinda, Zion, Dada, Grandpa Dwyane Sr., and TT, a.k.a. Aunt Tragil.

By Bob Metulus Images.

With my hero, Pastor Jolinda Wade, at the 2010 launch of her book,
Divine Grace Behind the Walls,
a collection of letters she wrote to God and other writings she did on her road to redemption during her incarceration. One of my mother’s earliest dreams was to be a writer!

By Bob Metulus Images.

Zaire made me so proud when he chose to wear #3 as his basketball number. Zion and I came to cheer as usual and surprised Zaire by bringing along his favorite player. Yep, that’s LeBron James.

By Bob Metulus Images.

At Hublot’s launch of the Dwyane Wade Signature Watch, I’m joined by the family that raised me—Dwyane Wade Sr. (
far left),
Jolinda Wade, and my sister Tragil Wade (
far right).
After our separate struggles and the different paths we’ve walked, it means so much that we can be together as a family.

By Bob Metulus Images.

Returning to Marquette University always makes me feel right at home. This visit in 2010 was extraspecial because I was able to host a Youth Basketball Clinic there. Whenever my foundation, Wade’s World, sponsors camps and clinics like this with kids, I am humbled to be able to tell them that I never gave up on my dreams and that they shouldn’t give up on theirs.

By Bob Metulus Images.

Zion never fails to put a smile on my face—even with the sprained ankle I got during the All-Star Game in Los Angeles in February 2011.

By Bob Metulus Images.

Wow! Look at all the hands giving me high-fives at the Overtown Youth Center event, sponsored by the Wade’s World Foundation! I see my younger self in so many of their faces.

By Bob Metulus Images.

My thirtieth birthday weekend in January 2012 was filled with multiple surprises, each more touching than the last. But the moment that stood out the most was when I felt a hand on my shoulder during a family brunch, and I turned around to see Grandma. Willie Mae Morris had just celebrated her ninety-first birthday. For nine years I’d been trying to get her to come visit, but she’d refused to board a plane. But for my thirtieth, she overcame her fear and brought my life full circle.