The Way it Was

For the past fifteen years sports has been all I know. I never realized how nice it was to have an afternoon where I didn’t have to walk all the way to the Knapp Center or spend a weekend in another small dingy town in middle America or riding a bus for sometimes eleven hours at a time just to play a two hour match. So, I guess I consider myself a “regular” student now...which is really unusual to think about, but being a regular student and an athlete are very different from what I have experienced in the past four years of playing volleyball plus the past three months learning what it’s like to not have all of the priorities that I have gotten used to having my whole life. Playing division I college volleyball is exactly like having a full time job, except you don’t see any paychecks…you’re there because you have to be…your coach/boss is usually someone you have to listen to but most of the time you don’t want to so you develop selective hearing and often get yelled at for not doing the right thing in the first place…so you’re either rewarded or punished by either playing or sitting on the bench. Injuries are another story…I could name off several parts of my body that throb or bother me when I am just laying in bed at night, my disappointment came when I was cleaning and all I found to throw out were heating packs, ace bandages, braces, dirty kneepads, and I couldn’t sell any of it or use it anymore…I will never miss rushing to class between workouts, no time to shower…sorry if I ever smelled…but walking around campus with my favorite school uniform, sweatpants and a hooded sweatshirt, quickly became a habit which I obviously have not broken free from quite yet. Nor will I miss the pain in my body that would last for a week and then get better and then the soreness would start over again the next day. Feeling sore muscles on your body that you didn't know existed and using muslces that you haven't used in years is a downside but learning experience at the same time. But three hours of practice a day plus another three outside of practice a week, plus weightlifting and conditioning and study hours…one would wonder when I go to school or when I have time or stop and breathe. Well, now I am breathing very well thank you, and my body doesn’t currently hurt right now and I am enjoying walking BY the Knapp Center and seeing all of my old teammates have to be there and I don’t…it’s a wonderful thing. Volleyball is a passion of mine, and now I play for fun...So I'm liking this new "non-athlete" thing SO FAR...