Personal Narrative: Finding A Way

Imagine being at the peak of your high school career, personally, academically, and athletically. For me, that was my sophomore year. I was selected to be on the homecoming court, I won a free class ring, and a free corsage and boutonniere for prom. I was on my way to a 4.0 grade point average. I was pulled up to Varsity basketball, I became the 100 meter hurdle regional champion, and I qualified for two events at the Division 4 State meet for track and field. In one split second, a clip of a hurdle, that was over. My first race of the day was the preliminary 100 meter hurdles. Once the race started, I was calm, focused, and determined. I was starting to make my way up to the front of the pack when I clipped my trail leg on the eighth hurdle.

My level five year at gymnastics was problematic and an overall frustrating year. I wanted to quit. The gymnastics meets were difficult because I had a slim chance of finding success in this demanding sport. I sat my mother down on my living room couch and told her this. She, being the kind-hearted mother she is, told me that she understood how competitive a sport like this can be. I agreed, but I knew that to give up too soon would not be the best solution. Reaching my goal of obtaining a first place award on an event would not be easy, but I convinced myself that I had to try. For a ten-year-old girl, I possessed a great deal of motivation, and my teammates knew that. No matter how low my scores were, they always believed in me. Attending

Due to a debilitating back injury, last year I had to give up the sport that was my life for so long. My emotions were all over the place, from depressed, to lonely, missing my friends at the gym, I was a mess. Gymnastics was what I did for so long. All my hard work went down the drain. My main focus turned to school. My interaction with society outside of gymnastics grew stronger. However, I soon discovered that gymnastics skills were not the only thing I learned. Gymnastics is a sport that has hidden life lessons, lessons that I did not realized were ebing taught. These lessons I have taken away, I am applying to my new life. From small things like eye contact when being spoken to that represents respect, how to look at the bright side of things, the value of time, and to never give up on even the most difficult things in life. These lessons have shaped my life and made me who I am. It wasn't all for nothing. The outcome was actually pretty

Over the many years I’ve spent doing gymnastics, I’ve become a determined and motivated individual. Always striving to do better in everything I do, whether it 's in my routines or raising my grades on every exam. To be the best in gymnastics, it not only takes having the routine with the most difficulty, but being able to perform those skills with precision, which takes endless practice and repetition. First or second place could be set apart by a hundredth of a tenth based on even the smallest imperfection such as a foot not being pointed.

Over the many years I’ve spent doing gymnastics, I’ve become a determined and motivated individual. Always striving to do better in everything I do whether it 's in my routines or raising my grades on every exam. Because in gymnastics to be the best it not only takes having the routine with the most difficulty, but being able to perform those skills with precision which takes endless practice and repetition. First or second place could be set apart by a hundredth of a tenth based on even the smallest imperfection such as a foot not being pointed.

Throughout the conversation, Susan did not inform me that the home was still in First Look and not open to investors at this time. Susan did not highlight any features of the home, nor did she talk about the neighborhood or the surrounding area. When asked, Susan paused to reference the property file and stated, "In looking at the pictures it appears that it needs interior paint, carpet, appliances, and a few windows, which the previous seller must have taken." She stated, "I don't know why they have to remove things from the homes." I asked, "Do you have offers?" She paused to check the property file and answered, "No offers." I asked, "Is the property behind the home farmland?" She paused to reference the property file and replied, "It appears

When I transitioned from elementary to middle school in seventh grade, I also joined an elite soccer team that was nearly an hour from my house. The practice ended up by taking nearly four hours of my time after school. I began to fall behind in work because I enjoy taking my time and making a perfect assignment. My teachers would ask me why I missed an assignment and I couldn't genuinely answer why.

Using my old experience and old habits I had become just as good or even better than before. As I was on the freshman team for gymnastics, I had brushed off the rustiness from the break that I had taken. Even though the sport is as not tough and rough as club, I still felt the rush that I did before. As I take the skills and lessons that I learned from club gymnastics, I still work just as hard and have just as much fun. As freshman year continued, I started to remember the habits and the reasons why I loved this sport. With a different coach and new teammates, I still felt at home. Jumping back onto the equipment was like riding a bike, even though I was a little rusty at first, I will always remember what was taught to me. Throughout freshman year I have improved and grown potential that I hope to apply later in life and later in gymnastics. I push for new skills and moves every day, but most importantly the sport makes me feel

To do something you love and instantly be great at it is a wonderful thing, however to do something you love but struggle with, and have to work hard to be great at is even more wonderful. Gymnastics was and still remains to be my passion, but looking at me now you would never guess that just a few years ago I was a shy girl who often became unsure of the sport. Not so much the sport, but herself. She felt as if she would never be good, she thought realistically saying "I'll never do anything great with this." Her goal was to be as good as the older girls and to become an amazing gymnast in the highest level of her gym, known as excel. She never felt like a gymnast, she only felt like she did gymnastics. Nevertheless, she persisted. She

I was not the ideal gymnast. My lanky body dwarfed the other girls in my gymnastics class, and my age created a clear divide – while most girls start gymnastics in pre-school, my first day on a tumbling mat was in second grade. In addition to minimal upper body strength, I was pigeon-toed, with my left leg longer than my right. But despite my disadvantages, I went to every practice I could, and decided that I would become the best gymnast I could be – and I was. For 16 hours a week, year-round, for seven years, I worked. Finally, when I was 13, I won the Junior Olympic Level 5 Maryland State Championship for vault. It seemed like I had finally achieved what I had worked so long for, and from there out, I had nowhere to go but up.

Gymnastics is unequivocally one of the primary facets of my life, and consequently, becomes the preeminent vehicle for many of the successes and challenges in my life.

I stayed involved in school activities, I worked a part-time job, kept my G.P.A up, and I still managed to spend time with family and friends. My academic path was also interrupted by many obstacles. I was challenged with gender and ethnic inequality inside the classroom, difficult course choices and, most challenging, emotional issues. Beginning in my second year of high school, I began to feel exhausted and anxious. It was during this time that my headstrong motivation began to quiver. However, I managed to persevere without help from others. I continued to push myself forward, and eventually, I managed to feel better again. I surrounded myself with busy work, good people, positive thoughts, and eventually I was able to get back on track and work towards what I viewed as most

At 13, four years is an eternity. The days after I finally mastered my elusive full, I lamented the waste of four precious years. Yet today, I understand that in those years, I gained not just a handful of new, more elaborate tricks, but rather, two crucial character traits. Gymnastics taught me commitment, to not give up after the first failure, and especially not after four years of failures. Gymnastics taught me perseverance, to push through the exhaustion of a six-hour practice, especially when your soul is about to leave your body in exhaustion. Gymnastics taught me to commit to a goal, and to persevere, no matter how trying it may be. Because nothing beats the feeling of pride that comes from finally breaking through a wall, finally feeling the air under your wings as you fly through the

The most significant challenge I have faced was balancing my academics and sports. I have been involved in the boy's soccer program at Palm Desert High School since my freshman year and each season has proven to be a test for me academically. I must say that attempting to balance my school work and soccer during my freshman and sophomore year has taken a toll on my academic achievement. It is unfortunate, however, I learned many things that will benefit me in the future. It was difficult because stress and anxiety amounted on top of all the school work and assignments that needed to be completed with the little time I had in my hands. Each season lasted around four months and during those four months, I accumulated bad habits. I procrastinated

At the age of three my parents decided to put me in gymnastics, I excelled immediately and after a couple months I entered into the pre-competitive program. My love for gymnastics continued and I became a provincially ranked, high level gymnast until the age of fourteen when I shattered my ACL and meniscus in my knee which required surgery. However, my years of gymnastics taught me a great deal of skills that I carry with me to this day. Primarily, I learned exceptional self-discipline, time management, and balance (metaphorically and physically). Gymnastics is exhausting on the body and the mind as you need total cohesion of both to excel. During my peak, I was training five hours per practice, upwards of five days a week and during the summer I would train six hours a day, six days a week. Gymnastics taught me that if you want something badly enough you will work as hard and as long as it takes to reach your goals. After shattering my ACL I pushed to continue training and I competed in my final competition and was the provincial champion on the bars event for my age category. I refused to let this surgery end my career. Six months after the surgery, I joined a competitive cheerleading team who I competed with for three years. Cheerleading was very different for me because it required all of the skills I had learned from gymnastics and on top of that I had to learn how to work with a team. I believe gymnastics is a huge part of who I am and has helped me to become the