“RUN!! It’s a breakaway” said my coach, as I hustled down the field trying to keep the soccer ball in my possession. The smell of the fresh green grass went to straight to my head, as I went to attack the ball. I could hear my teammates yelling, “ Let’s go World Class!” There I was standing right in front of the goalie, and I went for it. A huge push, and the ball went straight into the net. The excitement of the crowd made me feel extremely proud of myself. As confident as I felt in that moment, the glory of a goal did not last very long. There comes a time in each and every person’s life, where you may not like the outcome of something and there is nothing you can do about it. In the fifth grade I was playing two amazing sports. These sports were soccer and tennis. They both expressed who I was. I looked forward to going to soccer practice and tennis every day.

I can remember the day like it was yesterday, when I was told I could no longer play two sports. My mom came to pick me up from soccer practice, which was about thirty five minutes away. My other siblings were in the car, and while we were all getting out, my mom asked to talk  after dinner. I didn’t think much of what she was going to say. I knew I hadn’t done anything wrong, so there was nothing to stress about. Once dinner was over, we went into my family room and began to discuss our day like we had always done. She then started to tell me about how she couldn’t wake me up for school in the mornings, and the long drives to my sport locations were beginning to be too much for her. I didn’t quite get the message until my mom explained, “which is your favorite sport?” I started to get upset, but I didn’t want to express my sadness to my mother just yet. I went back to my room and started to think. My mom had told me not to tell my sister because she has some sort of influence over me. I guess she thinks that whatever my sister tells me to do I will just do. In some cases, my mom was right about my sister, but in others I thought she could completely understand my situation of choosing between my two favorite sports.

At about 12:30 at night, I was still wide awake, trying to make a decision. I went into my brother’s bedroom and asked him to wake up...he didn’t wake up. Then as I shut the door I heard footsteps from the either side of the hall. It was my mom asking me what I was doing awake. I began to tell her how I could not sleep due to overthinking. She told me that no decision had to be made until I was completely ready and sure.

A week of sports, homework, and family dinners went by. My mom asked me if I was ready to make a final decision. Before I told her, I sat there thinking about what sport I look forward to, and what sport I could see myself playing in the future. I finally knew what  I wanted to continue playing. It was tennis. I knew it all along, it just took me some time to finally let it sink in that I would be dedicating myself to just one sport. My mom was so proud that I chose tennis, which meant no more far rides, and muddy soccer tournaments. Picking this sport made me realize that I was able to make my own decisions without an adult telling me what to do. If I had been playing a different sport, I would have missed out on meeting a whole bunch of great friends, and one best friend. Giving up a sport like soccer was a difficult task for me to overcome, because I would watch games on television and hear my friends talk about them winning their games. Moreover, I knew that tennis was a successful choice because it was a sport I saw myself playing in the future and thriving in. I, myself, still believe that I made the correct decision in choosing tennis.“ The mind works in mysterious ways,” says Jackson, and this has taught me to think about the fact that in the end, things always happen for a reason.