Personal Narrative Of A Juggling Routine

It was a cloudy fall day. I was outside my house playing kickball. I loved playing kick ball, it was my favorite game to play outside. I was at first base when my neighbor, Jessie Walkovich, walked up from the cul de sac to home plate ready to kick. I watched as my other neighbor, Jeffrey, pulled his arm back and let go of the ball. I could see it rolling towards Jessie. When she kicked the ball, it came rolling right to me. Quickly I got set and the ball rolled right into my hand, but it squashed my pinky finger. I got Jessie out and threw the ball back to Jeffrey. My finger started to hurt, it was like a heart pounding in my finger. I looked down and my pinky and it did not look normal.

I stood staring at my mom with a blank expression as she applied foundation on my face followed by powder and blush and a number of other various cosmetics that I had lost count of. Makeup, hair, costume, all of those were on the back of my mind as the thought of performing in front of three hundred people clouded my thoughts. All around me were muffled sounds of other dancers frantically running around trying to get ready in time, mothers yelling at their daughter's, music blaring from various speakers, doors opening and closing, metal hitting the tile floors as tappers practiced down the hall, but all I could hear was the thundering sound of my heart beat in my chest. My body started quivering slightly. The nerves were setting in. I don’t

My brain goes silent. I forget my problems, my issues, my struggles, and everything that makes me feel dead inside. Nothing gives me more hope and happiness, then running on floor to hanging on a bar. From the darkness inside comes a light that feels like an eternal flame that can never be extinguished. Nothing can stop me from feeling more alive. Starting gymnastics has been the best decision I have ever made and has made me the person I am today. With every move, every skill, and every moment, gymnastics makes me feel alive.

I waited weary in anticipation of what name would break out of the happy-go-lucky collegiate cheerleader’s boisterous mouth as he was announcing the two lucky 2017 National Cheerleading Association All Americans out of all 4 Belton cheer squads. I replay this moment in my most vivid dreams, feeling the excitement of the halcyon moment grow greater and greater as the nerves and emotions grew stronger and stronger. A moment as imperative as this showed me in the most transparent way that hard, continuous work and growth pays off in many more ways than one.

Cheer Athletics in Plano is one of the most prestigious competition gyms in the country. There are other Cheer Athletics’ branches in other places like Frisco and Austin, but not one is as successful as Plano. It is the absolute best place to go for a serious cheerleader. The best and most experienced coaches work there and they are hungry to win. They expect every ounce of energy and athleticism to be left on the floor when we are finished performing. I have never had any problems with an authority figure until I started at Cheer Athletics.

A couple of months later competition season came and I was so nervous to go out there and perform in front of a lot of people. After the first

Nerves and the adrenaline feeling rushed through my body like a jet going sonic boom ripping through the air. I was on a school bus headed to a wrestling meet in York, Nebraska on a cold winter day in December. I figured my wrestling meet would be like all the other wrestling meets in the past, win most, lose a few. Never really thought this meet would be the final meet for the season. This meet would change my way of thinking towards wrestling and affect my confidence level.

Ever since I was eight years old I have been wrestling all year, every year, almost daily. I never thought that my wrestling career would extend past junior high or even into high school. I started doing pretty good at tournaments and practices so I thought I might actually make it in high school and become a successful wrestler. Before I graduated from junior high, I had decided that the high school that I was going to be attending didn't have the best wrestling program so I moved to another school nearby which had a renowned wrestling program called Washington Community High School in Illinois. It was a tough decision, but I eventually told my parents that I wanted to move to Washington in order to keep wrestling. They agreed surprisingly and that's when the journey began.

I am a small town girl who has attended a private school in Lebanon, TN my whole life. I have been involved in many things at school to get myself out there and make a difference in my community. To get out of my comfort zone I joined the soccer team my sophomore year and auditioned for plays my junior year. Cheerleading has been a part of my life since fifth grade. My job was always to choreograph the dances. These activities helped me grow as a person and take on leadership roles.

I am a juggler. For as long as I’ve juggled, I’ve dreamt of competing at the International Jugglers Association (IJA) stage. Where others saw engineering, math, and science, I saw that stage. My fascination with juggling and the way people worked with their props and music brought me to Quebec City in 2015 as a part of our 16 person Ultimate Club. Here I was, participating in the IJA Teams Stage Championships.

Playing multiple sports when I was younger was great. My second favorite sport was soccer and I was great. I was the best on my team by far and I showed it when I played.

As a freshman in highschool I had set my mind to joining the swim team in the fall and the gymnastics team in the winter. I had talked with the coaches making sure that the practice times would work out during the times where they overlapped. I had it all set out, my year was going to go according to plan and I would be a two sport athlete.

As a child, early play experience that I had started at the age of four, this play was Cheerleading. I started pee wee cheer for the Brunswick Bull Dogs in Brunswick, NY as I cheered for the boy’s football team on the sidelines. My mom always brought me to my practices, and games. This play experience applied me to meet an engage with new friends and this is what made me a well-rounded person today. My cheer coach had a great personality always a smile on her face ready to teach us new things. This was a physical, engaging, visual and the following instruction play. I was multitasking at the time and did not even realize it. We were always practicing our sideline cheers and how we could improve them for the upcoming game. We had practice clothes

So when I was five my parents took my to a bowling alley for the first time. At first I didn’t like it because I didn’t know how to bowl, and I was really bad at it. But after the second game i was getting the hang of it. I actually started to like bowling. my parents told me that I get my liking in bowling from Aunt Tracy. So everytime my aunt would come in to time we would go bowling. When I got to high school and learned that they had a bowling time. I was so happy and ready to tryout. One day after tryouts my dad took me out to eat and was really happy that i was actually trying out for a team in high school. This was the first time i have ever tried out for a team. so i was hoping that i made it. . During dinner I got an email. when

I remember getting prepared for the show today, and I recollect dripping in sweat because I was anxious to perform in a sold-out show. This caused my hands to perspire more, making it nearly impossible to hold on to my bar. My parents, Beatrice and Alonzo Moss, had already given me a talk about how I could not let them down, and that the future of the circus depended on this show. Feeling an immense amount of pressure, I knew that I still had to go out there. Walking into the tent, I could feel the anticipation of the crowd, and I decided to make my way to my bars like I had done a