Every Story Has

A Beginning

Every story has a beginning. However, not everyone's story is the same.  The beginning of my story, the fall of my freshman year of college, at first glance is different from most college freshman. First day on campus I was handed Nike T-shirts, shorts, spandex, sports-bras, sweats, and a sweatshirt. I was told "It's an honor to wear 'Kentucky Softball' across your chest," and "Never disrespect this brand." That last part shocked me, I was part of a brand now. I was labeled and everything I did or said represented something bigger than myself. Throughout High School as I was preparing myself for this transition into college athletics I knew there would be standards, but its hard to prepare yourself for the reality of becoming part of a brand like the University of Kentucky. There was no way to truly be prepared for how far my mind and body would be pushed those first few month of college. There was no way to prepare myself for all the moments I questioned how much more I could endure. There was also no way to prepare myself for how much I'd grow as a human and how much I'd truly benefit from the countless hours of work that had to be put in, not only for my athletic success but most importantly in the classroom. After all, I am a STUDENT-athlete, not simply an athlete. Although some people may choose to disagree with this statement, there is a huge difference between a student-athlete, a student, and an athlete. Being a student-athlete combines two labels that individually require countless hours of dedication. When brought together, the outcome is something special, something only few get to experience in a life time, something that should never be taken for granted. Im not writing this blog to simply brag about all the perks that come with being a college athlete. As someone who experiences these benefits everyday, when I think back on the fall of my freshman year and try to imagine the future of my college career there is only one word that comes to mind and really stands out: Sacrifice. My one goal is to share my story and connect with others, whether they be athletes or not, everyone experience sacrifice within their life time. But as I said before, not everyone's story is the same.