Well, I wasn’t always a volleyball player. Before my newfound love, I played soccer for six years. I loved the sensation of the ball on my feet, the repetitive drills, and being one of the best in the craft that I worked so hard to polish. Over years of hard work I saw a drastic improvement in my skills. So much so that I was moved up to Varsity in a highly competitive program after three weeks. I was not able to return to the program for financial reasons; with the gas prices on the rise and a long, lonely, daily drive to practice I made the hard decision to quit this past summer. I let myself feel devastated, but continued on with life and school. As a student-athlete and teenager I have grown accustomed to maintaining a high GPA and balancing my responsibilities along with sports. Instead of focusing on my sadness, I decided to use that energy to begin my college applications. A few weeks after school started I heard about tryouts being held for the Volleyball team. My prior experience with the sport entailed playing it with friends and watching a cartoon about it. While I did not have a complete grasp on the rules of the sport, I did not let that stop me from taking a chance. “Who knows if I’ll be good enough to make it, but I can try.” On the first day of tryouts I was quite lost. After such a long time of focusing on what my feet could do, having to use my arms to get the ball to a desired position seemed foreign. Not only did I have to awaken a part of my body, but I simultaneously had to stay attentive when it came to new sports terminology. “What’s a serve? What’s a float?” Saying “MINE” instead of “here”. This experience was new and fresh; but it was just what I needed to move on from my past sorrow. I was also introduced to Volleyball pads that day. I was amazed and sold at the amount of the slip and freedom they gave me on the floor. The court seemed small, but when I slipped on those pads it felt as big as the fields that I am accustomed to. The sense of novelty and freedom was accompanied by new teammates. Feeling welcome is of the utmost importance to me, and that’s exactly how my teammates make me feel. My more experienced teammates are always open to helping me and others out. And new players, like myself, are working hard to assemble as a unit on the court while enjoying ourselves. Overall, my passion for Volleyball is built on great teammates, having fun, and taking chances. I’m glad I decided to try out for Volleyball. I still have much to learn, but I see myself overcoming this learning curve and continuing this sport for a very long time. I can only imagine how I’ll improve after much time, sweat, and dozens of bumps.