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<div class="_imgLayer_1mqhw_58">It has been a long, lonely (at times) journey for Daniel Rios from his childhood in Mexico to the massive stadiums of Major LeagueSoccer. In November 2020 the first pro hire of the new Nashville SC left all doubts behind about whether the journey has been worth it. He is big-time now and perhaps building a legend.</div>


Daniel Rios

<p>Joshua Smith was a young man of unwavering faith.</p>


I went to Spain in search of the Matador’s spirit.

<div id="pageContainer1" class="_page_1mqhw_95 " data-index="0">He said he believed life had a simple formula: God rewards people who practice good behavior.</div>
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<div class="_page_1mqhw_95 " data-index="0">“Up until the crisis I had never drank a drop of alcohol or said one cuss word,” he said. “I was a preacher’s kid,” he said. “A good one. I believed my success was a result of that. But I was wrong.”</div>
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<div class="_page_1mqhw_95 " data-index="0">“The financial crisis in 2008 changed all that,” he said. “I was doing everything right and I believed my success was a result of that good behavior. Then I lost almost everything and I was left wondering what anything meant.”</div>
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<p>We met Smith while visiting his club and restaurant in downtown Nashville, The Standard at The Smith House, a members-only club in the tradition of the legendary University Club of New York.</p>
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<p>We were seated in the club&#8217;s library when Smith entered and introduced himself, as is his custom. Making polite conversation, he said he had just returned from Spain.</p>
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<div class="_page_1mqhw_95 " data-index="0">Not one for polite conversation I asked him pointedly, “What took you to Spain?” He paused and considered the question. He chose to answer truly instead of socially. He said, “I went to Spain on a quest. I went to see the matadors.”</div>


<p>He was hunting, he said. He was searching for that thing the matadors own–an ability to find meaning not by avoiding difficulty but by meeting difficulty head-on. He told a bit of his personal story and explained how a loss of faith led him on a search for meaning. He said, “I was self-righteous. The crisis knocked that out of me.”</p>
<p>He said it isn’t like he doesn’t believe in the things he was taught as a young person but that he now knows life isn’t a simple matter of cause and effect. He said good things happen to bad people and bad things happen to good people. He told us he was on a quest to learn how to be a good person despite circumstances. He said, “I went to Spain in search of the Matador’s spirit.”</p>
<p>The following summer we accompanied Smith as he trained with friends in California.</p>


ACT III, SCENE II

Daniel Rios

He is big-time now

ACT III, SCENE II

Matador spirit