My Experience Of Bowling

The conversations and interactions people have with each other is a key necessity in becoming an active member in any society. The bonds and relationships that people make is what forms a community. In Robert D. Putnam’s (2000), Bowling Alone, there are three forms of capital; physical which as physical objects, human so properties of an individual like education, and social which are the connections between individuals. Social capital is what makes us branch out into the world and interact with the ones around us, this is both good for ourselves and for the community. Social capital in America has dramatically decreased throughout each generation of population. With the expansion of technology and social reform, the youngest generation has become the most antisocial generation. This antisocial movement has become noticeable in many of groups interactions that use to have high amounts of interaction like political involvement, civic participation, religious participation, and workplace connections.

After winning junior tournaments I wanted more and therefore; I challenged myself to the next level. I remember having a chat with my dad, he was giving me a father to son chat about life and what is best to focus on whether academic studies or sport? As he was concerned because I was spending more time playing sports than doing school work. He said life of sport is hard but, I reassured him that everything will be fine. I knew I had a mind set and ability not to give up because my strength lies on mental toughness and my settling for second best wasn’t /is not satisfying outcome.

Nearly every time I had a tournament, I frantically checked the draws, praying for an easy win. Every time there was a player better than me, I gave up and just left it all to fate. As expected, I would lose easily. My losses took a huge toll on me. I began to lose matches against players who were supposedly “easy” to beat. Rather than blaming it on my weak mind, I would blame my skills, or even something irrelevant, like the noise level. I would then practice for hours trying to improve my groundstrokes. While my game improved, my mindset never changed, leading me to continue on a losing streak. Changing this mindset and overcoming this challenge took a while. I forced myself to not look at draws before a tournament and play the best I can. By doing this, I did not let my mind and my self-confidence become a hindrance to my game. In a couple of months, I got so used to playing without fear of the person on the other side of the net that I was unfazed, even after returning to looking at the draws before a tournament. As a result, I learned to relax more and focus on playing, rather than focusing on my

Over the last two years of my High School education, I found the extracurricular activities I fit in the most. I am part of Student Council, National Honor Society and a member of the tennis team. They all have molded me to be the best. However, I feel like tennis has impacted me the most. It’s a sport that has taught me so much, from being physically fit, to mentally prepared for any outcome. I learned that a game it’s not about winning or losing, but about how it’s played, and what it took to get there. Being in a team is about contributing others, and learning from them. It’s about accepting that we all make mistakes, and only practice can reduce the times we make them. So many loses and few victories, but I always preferred to sheer my

As I put off opportunities to improve my skills, and my character, the toll only became harsher and more difficult to overcome. In turn, my status among the other athletes began to deteriorate. Witnessing my peers expedite their game as I still struggled did not phase me so much at the time. In fact, I was sure that my role on the team would remain the same. This was obviously false, as within the matter of weeks I was pushed back further in the batting lineup, and committing more errors in the field than ever before. It was during our playoff run that I had realized the resulting detriment, when each player was counted on more than ever before. We ended up making it to the championship, only being one run short of winning. Although our team was able to accomplish that much, I felt short handed when it came to the successful

A few years ago I was training to be professional tennis player at one of India’s top tennis academies. I had been playing tennis only for ten months when my tennis coach suggested I participate in the upcoming national level fastest serve tennis tournament. There was a fear in me, a fear of facing the more skilled, experienced, and accomplished competition, yet my mind wanted to overcome that fear and trust my coach and ten months of training. My coach had immense faith in my abilities to perform well, but being the underdog, I lacked the confidence to compete alongside top ranked players. As the tournament date grew closer, I found myself battling between two paths - give in to my fear and surrender any chance of winning, or escape my comfort

Robert Putnam's basic thesis is that there is a decline in civic engagement in urban cities. He goes on to explore different probable factors that are causing the decline in civic engagement. First off, he dichotomizes civic engagement into two categories: machers and schmoozers. Machers and schmoozers are people who engage in formal kinds of civic engagement (following politics) and informal kinds of civic engagement (hanging out with friends) respectively.

People accuse me of being competitive, as if this is bad quality. While it is true, in the generic sense of the word, but to me the only competition that matters is my own performance compared to my past performance while on the line with outstanding shooters. Competition energizes me to improve.

Later that day I went home, I was so mad at myself that I told my parents and sisters that I won't do it ever again and that it was just a waist of my time, but to my surprise the next day I found myself at the bowling alley still struggling. During the practice the JV 1 coach came up to me and told me the most important thing in bowling “don't look at the pins, look at the second arrow”. It seems like nothing helpful but in reality it is. It's a small thing but it makes the game perfect. Thinking back I was close to quitting bowling but with one help from the coach my life changed completely. After two weeks of practice came the first match I was really nervous because I thought that other girls will make fun of me because I didn't get past 100, but in reality none of us did because we were starters first year bowlers we had a lot of things to learn to become better. In the middle of the season was another time where I was considering quitting, being a freshman I was asked to play with the JV team which mean the there are girls who are more experienced and have bowl for a year or even more. I was so nervous about again the judging me that I did really bad that math but the coach didn't give up on me yet, he wanted me to play for the rest of the season with his section, and that was the place where I learned the

Bowling Alone", an article by Robert Putnam, responds to a major issue about the decline of social capitalization. It argues that at first, America had a very strong civil society "ever since the publication of Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America" (page 381) where "Americans of all ages, all stations of life, and all types of disposition are forever forming associations." (page 381-382, quoted by Tocqueville). However, as time moved on, it was clear that there was a decline in membership of these associations such as the decline of bowling leagues. "Between 1980 and 1993, the total number of bowlers in America increased by ten percent while league bowling decreased by forty percent." (page 387-388). This becomes an important issue as social capitalization is very important to a well balanced democracy.

This one game taught me to not pay attention or feel pressure because the people that really matter would always be proud. Knowing that what I think about my performance or ability in a game, or in anything else in life, is the only thing that matters. Now I play like I know I can. I know when the whistle blows and the game ends my parents and family will still love me. So be satisfied with who you are and what you do because the people who really care will be proud either

The America society has many aspects in life since 1950 through 2000s, many up and down due to be economy changing over time. In the book, bowling alone by Robert d. Putnam believes that are society are influence by things that are leaders does and the effects on our people judgment. Putnam reveals that each chapter has clear message that highlights his points about people interest in American society. Putnam reveals his points about American society; social capital, religious participation, social network, and trust.

Have you ever wondered what professional bowlers consider to be the best training and coaching methods? There are various pro’s and con’s of different training methods in Professional Bowling.

Walking reluctantly into the bowling alley on a Thursday for my first practice was nerve racking. Pushing myself through the door wasn't easy, and I was instantly overcome with feelings of trepidation. All of my teammates were well prepared, confident, with their chests held high. Why couldn't I be like that? Looking around, I noticed everyone had a ball, shoes, and a bag. I immediately felt terribly apprehensive and hesitant. I turned to my brother, pleading with him to drive me home, but he reassured me that one practice would not be so bad. I decided to give bowling a shot, but I wasn't elated in the moment. Eventually, I told the man behind the counter my shoe size, picked out a ball, and ever so slowly walked down to the alley.

By working with girls with varying levels of athleticism and knowledge, I was taught how to be a team player who builds off everyone’s skills. I also learned how to continue fighting even when you are losing the battle. I learned many lessons from games. I think the most important lesson I learned is you should never give up. Never giving up is important in sports as you can always come back and win. In light of all my reasons I chose to play a full-time summer sport, travel softball, instead of going on family vacations.