By: Sarah Yao
Honestly, growing up finding something that I liked and something that I was good at was difficult. As I got older, I began to realize that I didn’t have much time to choose. I felt pressured and stressed about what to do. Slowly, I began to creep out from under the rock and find out what really interested me. I found volleyball. Volleyball was the first activity that I was passionate about.
It just started out with me going to a camp with my sister. I slowly began to realize that this was the sport for me. What really got me into volleyball the most was just hitting the ball. The feeling of adrenaline pulsed through my veins as I tossed the ball perfectly into the air on its way to a serve. Then I felt the rotation of my arm as I hit the ball. The feeling of having the ball soar over the net and onto the other court made my heart beat increase. It just felt so natural.
But, like all great players, I didn’t start out good. In fact, I was absolutely terrible. My legs weren’t bent, I wasn’t stepping into position, I wasn’t moving my feet. I heard that many times from my coach. She was the one who always told me to never give up and keep trying. She always gave me tips to improve, and I just thanked her every time I finished a game. But that wasn’t the only thing that contributed to my success.
Like how you succeed, I practiced. The biggest lesson I learned from my experience with volleyball is that you need to try hard and never give up. I know this might sound cliche, but practicing hard and never giving up really helps. Not just in sports, but in school too. That really helped me with my future and got me to where I am now.
I would love to see those around me succeed. I would say that the key to becoming successful is not to push others down or view them as a threat. Even if they got a better score than you or are better than you at almost everything, don’t give up and never back down. Speaking from experience, I was the weakling of our group. Most of the other girls were much better than me, yet I didn’t really view them as a threat. I encouraged them, and that helped me with sportsmanship. Sportsmanship helped me become more mature and respectful, and based on my past experience, people generally appreciate that.
In the end, even if you are stuck with finding something you really enjoy or are really good at, just think of it as a learning opportunity. Don’t give up, don’t back down and last but certainly not least, try your best.
