A wave of nostalgia

It hits every year around this time... UCA college nationals, NCA college nationals, Worlds. Each one brings on another wave, always full of different emotions, but most noticeably, a happy sad. Cheer will always be a huge part of my life no matter how long I am retired as an athlete. I certainly took all the wonderful experiences for granted while I was enjoying them. I never thought I would see the day where I hung my cheer shoes up for good, and that day certainly came too quickly. I often find myself thinking "if I could just step out on that mat one more time." But even though I am done competing, the life lessons, the friends and family, and the experiences I gained from it are far more important than any one of those 2:30 performances.

I am naturally a very competitive person, and with that competitiveness comes being very hard on myself, and often times, critical of others. I  think that was my biggest downfall as an athlete. I was so focused on the end product, that I sometimes forgot about everyone and everything it took to get there. At the end of it all, I came out without any rings. But I don't consider it coming up short by any means. Now that I've been out of the sport for awhile, I have come to be much more grateful for the process rather than the product. While I dreaded every single "One more time" while I was cheering, I appreciate every time it was uttered now. It taught me the strength and perseverance that has made me the strong and driven woman I am today. It taught me that no matter how tired I am, no matter how defeated I may feel, that there is a spark left for me to fuel the fire. No amount of hardware on my hand could teach me a better lesson than that.

I had the privilege of being coached by women who truly exemplified what it meant to be passionate.
I can honestly say that they put their hearts and souls into our program. Their pure joy for our success exemplified everything they worked so hard for, and how selflessly they dedicated themselves to their athletes. I work hard every day to put even half the amount of that passion into everything I do, and the results are amazing. I look forward to the opportunities to come and will forever remember the ones that got me there.