Well I survived my freshman year of college…..barely. Before I left for college I had some older friends tell me their “roommate horror stories”. Of course I was think nothing could be as bad as what they are saying. Man was I wrong…..so very very wrong. I don’t want to go into every single detail about my suite mate from hell but it was a horrible experience where I am sad to say kind of ruined my freshman year a little.
But don’t get me wrong….between all the nights calling my mom crying because my common room and bathroom were trashed after I just cleaned….I had a pretty awesome time in college. I met some really amazing people who also happened to be my teammates. We might not have had the best season in the world but we had a bond many teams did not have. And I was so honored I got to lead that team with the other co-captain.
There were two people who stood out on the team. Maryann and Savannah. It was true friendship at first sight. At first Maryann and I were attached at the hip. It helped that we both had some serious injuries so we were always in the training room together getting treatment. And then Savannah decided she wanted to hang with the cool kids…lol jk but its true, Savannah started spending a lot more time with Maryann and I. We were always seen together. We walked to class together, ate together, did homework together, everything together. When someone saw us by ourselves they were worried something bad happened to the others. Sadly after many tearful nights, Maryann decided it was best for her to retire from volleyball because of her injuries and return to her home state.
At first I was confused on how she could do that. Why would you quite a sport you loved when you were doing so well. Well, I finally realized later on. But until then, it was just Savannah and I. We had made some friends on the lacrosse team and those guys will forever be my best friends. All the nights we stayed up laughing at each other and all the support that we had for each other can’t be explain. This group was my family away from home. Never once did I feel unsafe when they were around….it was the exact opposite actually. They were always there to put a smile on my face after a tough loss or practice. I’m almost positive Savannah talked me out of walking out of practice a solid 20 times during spring season. This part of my freshman year I would not trade for anything.
Sadly things happened. My injury kept getting worse and worse. Appointments after appointments we could not figure out why my knee was doing what it was doing. After my second knee surgery, my dad told me that once the pain overrides my love for the game, it’s time to hang up my shoes and retire. I couldn’t stand to think about that option but the pain just kept getting worse and worse and my coach was making things really hard for me. But I was not going to retire…not yet. Then I found coaching. I’ve coached in the past but not an actually team and I had the opportunity to coach a national ranked team this year. And I fell in love. Something about watching these young girls fall in love with the sport I did is just inspiring.
So its my last week of school. Its finals week. Its regionals for the team I’m coaching. I’m stressed. I call my mom one night after having a huge argument with my suit mate and I told her I’m transferring. I was sick and tired of the school that would not help me when I needed help…the school that promised me things they did not keep. But like most stressed out female teenagers I thought I was overreacting and changed my mind.
But the idea of transferring never left my mind. 3 weeks into my summer I made my final decision. The pain was greater than my love for the game. And for once I was ok with that. I have coaching to thank for that because I found something I loved almost as much as the game. So here I am….3 weeks before I move into my first apartment at my new school in Atlanta. I’m extremely nervous because I will be all by myself now. I won’t have Savannah with me all the time so I’m going to have to learn to make friends all over again. Its like starting freshman year all over again. But I am so ready! This school is going to give me a great advantage for physical therapy school and I couldn’t be more excited. I also get to continue coaching the 14 national team! I have so much to look forward to this year and I can’t wait to see where my journey takes me.
~Dock Baby
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Aquí he aprendido mucho. He mejorado mi comprensión y habla del español. También he hecho algunos amigos que durarán toda la vida. Esto ha sido una gran experiencia y estoy muy contento de haber podido participar en ella. Dicho esto, estoy listo para volver a casa. Estoy listo para dormir en mi propia habitación y para ser capaz de hablar Inglés de nuevo. Estoy listo para ser capaz de caminar por las calles sin que la gente me mira y se pregunta “¿qué es una persona con el pelo rojo haciendo aquí en Rosario”. PERO! – He amado cada. sola. momento.
” or just staying up late on a Friday night dancing around and singing along to songs. From trying to practice English/Spanish without an accent. From standing in front of the fire watching a movie. And especially from taking random selfies whenever and wherever our hearts desired.
‘s birthday party and also the night of the “disco”. Around 6, I went to the hair saloon with Sofia and her mom. As they got their hair done for the party, the only thing going through my mind was “is this a formal party because I know I didn’t bring anything close to formal”. So after freaking out for a little while Sofia showed me her outfit and it wasn’t fancy at all. So after spending some girl time helping each other put makeup on, we were ready to head down to the party. I had a really great time at this party. Sofia’s dad started dancing with me and so did the host dad that Tutti is staying with. And then Tutti showed up and we had even more fun! But sadly she had to leave to another party.
This city is right on the coast and it was beautiful! There we met up with her grandparents, uncle, aunt, and “primes”(cousins) to have lunch. After we ate, her mom drove around a little while to show me the town. Sofia passed out beside me and I was close to falling asleep too. Then her mom took us to her store. As soon as we got home, we went our different ways. Sofia went to sleep and I went into my room and read for 3 hours until dinner was ready.
Dock Baby Sets Sail 