A lot of people don’t understand the significance of high school sports in someone’s life. Not me, though. I fully understand and I am thankful for high school sports. High school sports have taught me great lessons in life and they have also kept me occupied and out of trouble over the years.
Without high school sports, I’m not sure where I would be.
Sports have been my life since I was very young. I’ve dedicated so much time in the weight room, on the football field and on the baseball field. Unlike most, though, I never complain because I love the games and I realize that all of the hard work pays off eventually and when it does, there is no better feeling in the world.
Don’t get me wrong, though, I’ve had my struggles along the way. It hasn’t been easy at all, but that is what will help me in life because I know that life isn’t always easy.
In my sophomore year, I had one of the greatest baseball seasons in my life. I batted .494 and was awarded all-county, all-conference, all-district, All-Ohio honorable-mention and Most Valuable Player of my team.
So naturally, I had very high expectations for junior year. It did not go as planned, though. Twelve games into the season, I was only batting .120 and struggling worse than ever had before.
Instead of giving up, though, I believed in myself and I kept putting in the extra time and work to figure things out. Finally, we played Madison, our rivals, and I went 4-for-4 and we won the game. After that, I didn’t look back at all. I turned my season around and finished with a .344 batting average and I was awarded all-County, all-Conference and Most Valuable Player of my team.
It wasn’t easy, but I fought through the adversity. I can thank the game of baseball for teaching me to never give up, even in times of great adversity. Anything can be overcome as long as you are willing to overcome it.
Also, sports are very comparable to life itself. No sport is quite like life itself as much as football. I remember last season, my coach, Coach David addressed the team and said, “There is no other game that prepares you for life than football.”
At the time, I didn’t quite understand, but as the season went on, I began to realize what he was saying.
Life sometimes knocks you down, but you have to just stay strong and keep getting back up, similar to the game of football. Also, you have a team that you play for under the leadership of a coach. You work every day with this team to get better and better. You bleed, sweat and cry with this team.
You do everything you can to make that team better and all of that relates to the real world in the work force. You have to have a desire and a love for the game to keep working hard to get better and better. It is a commitment, just like any job would be. Football teaches you that you need to work hard for the things you want most; another valuable lesson in life.
Lastly, high school sports in general teach you how to compete. All of your life you are going to face competition and by playing sports, you have an edge on those who did not because you know how to outwork your opponent and do what it takes to overcome obstacles.
You know what it is like to fail and succeed. As an athlete, you know that succeeding isn’t the end, but failure mean you need to work harder. You also know that succeeding isn’t the end either.
You have to keep working so that you stay on top and you aren’t ever outdone. I feel as though high school sports have better prepared me for my life than anything else and for that I am so thankful. I can honestly say that high school sports meant EVERYTHING to me.
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