I slowly leaned back,  tense and tired from the hour of jumping and falling I had done that day. My hands started to ache.  I leaped desperately, grabbing at the hold that had evaded me for the past three years.  My grip failed and I hit the ground with a horrible crash. “I am determined to climb this wall,” I thought to myself. So I climbed back to get in position. Leaning back, poised to pounce, I went for it and my grip held. 

I had been trying to gain an achievement at the summer camp I have gone to for the past eight years. After three years of trying, I had climbed the climbing wall needed to get this achievement. I was over the moon. It was difficult, but after years of trying, I had finally achieved my goals and reached the summit of my own mini-mountain. 

At that moment I learned a lifelong lesson about hard work. I learned that I could achieve any goal set, as long as I put in enough work, time, and effort. I would tell people that they can get what they want if they try hard enough. I would also say that if you don't put work into things like sports or other activities, they will not reach their goals because this has happened to me many times.

 I tried out for the school baseball team. I had played recreational baseball my whole life, so I had a lot of confidence in my abilities. Therefore, I did not put a lot of effort into practicing and getting better. Sometimes when I was bored, I would venture out to the field to practice throwing or hitting for a little while, but I did not make it my main focus. I did not put a lot of effort into practicing and getting better. This meant that the other players were more ahead of me with baseball skills because baseball was their main focus, and it was pretty clear to me that no matter what, I would end up not making the team. It made me feel like all my time playing had been a waste. Though I was very disappointed,  the fact that I did not make the baseball team did mean that I could focus on my other interests.