For six wonderful years of my life I was a member of my high school’s color guard. Although there was a lot of things to love about being a twirler, being a color guard girl also came with daily struggles.

1.Sleeping on a bus.

The most literal struggle bus you can have.

2. Having a love/hate relationship with the band kids.

Because they were like the half siblings you didn’t get the choice to have, but you spent most of the summer, ninth periods, and weekends with them.

3. Explaining why color guard is cool.

Because of course it is!

4. Memorizing a complicated routine with no help.

5. Trying to make a routine that fits on the field during halftime.

Meaning you could twirl without hitting and killing any drummer.

6. Teaching new girls who probably signed up because they thought it would be easy.

7.Having a metal pole perturbing in your stomach during the national anthem.

Nothing says America like excruciating pain.

8. Carrying 10,000 items with you from the bus to the bleachers.

Flag, rifle, purse,umbrella, blanket, the entire band room.

9. Squad Drama

10. Having to smile all of the time during performances.

It was like being a pageant girl without the pageants, pretty outfits, pretty hair, and crowns.

11. Wearing ugly uniforms

12. Screaming across the field to tell somebody they weren’t on count with everybody else.

Because if one person was off, you were all off.

13. Feeling second rate to cheerleaders.

because cheerleaders cheer while color guard girls just kind of clap along to the band.

14. Competing with each other to see who can make the best new moves

15. Checking out the football players the entire game because there was nothing better to do because you most likely couldn't go far from the bleachers.

16. Posing awkwardly with the flag.

You know what I mean, when the flag looked like it was coming from somewhere other than the ground.

17. Wearing either nun-like uniforms or skimpy uniforms

18. Twirling in unbearable heat or twirling in unbearable cold.

a.k.a either you passed out or your fingers got hypothermia with or without gloves.

19.The horrid band shoes.

20. Trying to politely tell a person they suck… or being the who sucked.

21. Having to match the band no matter what their theme was.

22. Breaking the flag or rifle.

Even if you didn’t have to buy it, you had to replace it somehow before a performance.

23. Still trying to twirl anything you see.

24. Begging for more equipment.

25. Believing the color guard was the highlight of halftime and the entire game.

Because who didn’t want to see some 12 to 18-year-old girls twirl plastic, rubber, and polyester?

26. Dropping a flag pole on any part of your body.

I don’t know how many times I questioned my safety and sanity when twirling, but looking back I wouldn’t change a thing because the struggle was real, but so was my love for color guard.