The sound of the whistle jolted me into action. I dove from the block, and a wave of silence crashed over me as I hit the water. For a moment, there was a sense of serenity as I swam under the surface. The spell broke as I rose for air. I could hear everyone yelling and cheering. Tuning out the noise, I tucked my head under the water, staring at the pool’s tiled floor. Nearing the wall, I lifted my head to gather a breath of air before my flip turn to start my second lap. Looking up, I saw five of my team members at the end of my lane cheering for me. With a renewed energy from their excitement, I turned and continued the race. After the race was over and I was out of the pool, I took my hard-earned ribbon and scurried back to where my swim …show more content…
I was in the locker room surrounded by girls that I did not know. They all seemed to know each other. I began to feel like a fish out of water. When I found my friend, she led me out to the pool area where we waited for the rest of the team to trickle in. They were all chatting amongst themselves before the coach began practice. Practice lasted about two hours, during which I pushed myself to keep up. The team, I had realized, consisted of kids that had been doing this their whole lives. I found myself comparing everything I did to the others in my lane. My dives seemed sloppy, my turns were a mess, and my stamina ran out quickly. My abilities seemed to pale in comparison.
Exhaustion was all I felt by the time I arrived at home. I pushed myself to keep up with everyone, but I overdid it. I did not want to go back. It was too much for me, and I wanted to quit. In retrospect, the whole scenario I created in my mind was quite dramatic. I felt that I was the worst on the team and that because I was so terrible, no one would like me. After only one practice I was ready to give up. I did not want to put in the effort. Fortunately, my parents forced me to continue with the team. I arrived the next day with an intense