If you had told me five years ago that, by the time I was 17, I would lose the ability to walk and go through four hip surgeries, I would have told you that you were crazy. I would have told you that you've got the wrong person. It couldn't be me. I have too many dreams and aspirations that would get destroyed if that were me. I wish I could go back and give 15-year-old me a giant hug and tell her everything will be okay. Over two and a half years, I underwent four hip surgeries and four sessions of rigorous physical therapy. At the beginning of my first year of high school, I was a healthy bundle of energy with a dream of playing softball in college. I started playing softball in kindergarten and fell in love with it. At the age of 8, I started playing travel softball year-round. Soon after, I knew I wanted to play in college. However, two months into my first year of high school, my health drastically took an unexplainable turn for the worst. By October, I had lost the ability to walk without being in extreme pain and had to rely on crutches to move around. After months of numerous trips to different doctors, I was diagnosed with double hip impingement and double labrum tears in my hips. I required immediate surgery, and I had to put softball on hold for around six months. This was also happening during the start of the pandemic. That combo led me to be in a difficult place mentally. I was at my lowest during my rehabilitation. After recovering from my two hip surgeries, I returned to the sport I loved. While I missed a lot of softball, I luckily had my surgeries during the time the pandemic shut down all sports. The summer season got canceled, so I didn't miss out on too much. After being back to playing softball, I felt like I could finally breathe again, and my mental health improved dramatically. I still had the chance to play softball in college. Everything was okay again. Unfortunately, that didn't last. During the summer after my sophomore year of high school, I began struggling with my hips again. Frustrated, I went back to my surgeon and found out that my two previous surgeries were not successful, and the doctor needed to go back in and repair my hips again with two more surgeries. This was one of the hardest things I have ever had to hear. My dream of playing softball in college was destroyed for good. Looking back, I am grateful for the experiences I went through with my surgeries. While my surgeries destroyed a dream I had since I was a little girl, they helped me discover a new passion; becoming an athletic trainer and helping prevent sports-related injuries. My adversity has taught me how to be a better student, a better daughter, a better friend, and a better person. My hardships taught me how to find strength in the most difficult of times and how important community is. During the times I was the weakest I had ever been, I learned the importance of finding strength in the people around me and in God. My adversities have helped me become a person that can see the positive things in even the most negative of situations, work hard, push through difficulty, take care of myself, and find joy in everything. If I had the chance to go back and change everything, I wouldn't change a thing.