Personal Narrative: A Career As A Football Player

I’ve always a very shy very quiet person to start out and I often found it very hard to speak up when with other people especially when it comes to leading them. Though, with my position as a lacrosse goalie I was always under pressure from coaches to speak out more. As a goalie, it was my responsibility to keep up communications, lead my fellow defenders and location of the ball and when to crash in for a shot. It always seemed like a task I would never be able to fully grasp. So, when I made junior varsity my freshman year one of the first things my coach had me do was learn how to holler around my mouth guard and helmet. I struggled with it, I didn’t know when to call positions, my timing was off and I just plain felt like I was being too bossy to my teammates. My freshman year I never really got how important it was to step up and be a communicator on the team all I knew was that I felt I was screaming nonsense at my teammates. Then, late in the season of my sophomore year the varsity goalie suffered from a concussion and there really was no backup goalie so I had to step up. For about three games I played both varsity and junior varsity games and I learned about what really needed to be done to be a good goalie. I put in every effort, I connected with
people cheered them on, kept spirits high whatever way I could. Put my all into every step, every reaction as the ball was shot at me. I played on a team not as an individual in a goal. Communication became key, it was almost as if my entire game had evolved as I now knew communication better than I ever had before and became a part of a team.
No longer standing as an individual person that worked alone but a part of a well oiled machine. That year I earned my first award from my high school coaches, it was an award that stood for team spirit, showing my support and bright spirits in every practice, every game. It was an award that reminded me of the true importance of being positive and supportive through every game. Sports rely heavily on the physical aspects but the mental is just as important and if the mental game starts to fall apart then what can the team really accomplish
together. It’s important to remember that spirits need to be raised up when down and showing my support and excitement for my team is now a key part. I now lead communications always trying to find new ways to work with everyone. For every goal my team makes I make sure to raise my stick high in support of the people who I know worked so hard for every step that led up to it.