I was never going to be perfect. This is the only thought I had when my parents told me that they had just scheduled my scoliosis surgery. All of my hard work and dedication to gymnastics had been for nothing as I was never going to reach the top. From the time I was three until about twelve, I trained and competed at an elite level for gymnastics. My gymnastics career had taken me all around the nation, meeting Olympians and competing against the best. I had trained anywhere from eighteen to thirty-eight hours a week, working towards a “perfect ten.” Even when I was awarded first place, it still was not perfect. I always needed to make corrections. “Keep your legs straight, Megan! Point your feet!” my coach would holler comparing me to my teammates. In order to be noticed, I had to be the best. And I wanted to be the best. But scoliosis changed everything. All of my years of hard work to perfect my tumbling skills, strength, and flexibility felt as if they amounted to nothing. Not only did I feel like I failed my coaches, but I felt as though I failed my parents and everything they invested in me, including time and money. I truly was never going to be perfect.
The summer
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Freshman year, I was very shy, always worrying about what my peers thought of me as well as rarely stepping out of my comfort zone. However, as high school progressed, so did I. I took a risk and joined a competitive cheerleading team, as well as the high-school team. Cheerleading made me so happy. Instead of competing against my teammates, I competed with my teammates. I auditioned for a musical, and even when I was not cast, I auditioned the next year. I stopped worrying about what others thought of me and did activities because I enjoyed them. I used to live to please others and be perfect in everyone’s eyes. Now, I live to please myself. I motivate myself to be the best I can be, in school, in sports, in