Cheering is the reason I am happy when I want to cry.

During a game or competition when you are in the spotlight, you have to be happy. If you aren’t in a good mood, too bad, so sad, put on a smile and get on the field. I know how to put on a smile and pretend all is in good in the world - which can be good or bad. Before the first day of tryouts for lacrosse last week, I was freaking out. My anxiety was going insane and I have no idea why. I knew I was on varsity and the only goalie. I put on a smile for my coaches and pretended all was right in the world.

Cheering taught me to jump over obstacles, not go around them.

When learning how to do a new tumble pass or new stunt, you have to take it head-on. Sure, you can walk through it a few times, but then you have to jump into it. I attended a boot camp a few summers back and we were doing a parkour obstacle course. There was a box that was about four feet high and I was supposed to jump over it. You have no idea how badly I wanted to just run past it and get to the next thing, but I didn’t. I ran forward, jumped over it and landed on my leg. Yes, I broke my leg, but I jumped over the box like a champ.

Cheering taught me how to learn any dance in five minutes.

During practice, we would run through our new routines or cheers and when I ran through it once, it was committed to memory. This may not seem too helpful now that I am not a cheerleader, but it is. During camp, we have talent shows. The past few summers I have been stuck with male counselors that do not know anything about dancing. I was able to not only come up with a dance on the spot but also be able to remember it after I ran through it once.

Cheering is the reason I am always cheering others on.

During a game, you cheer on the boys. Whether they are winning by four touchdowns or losing by four, cheerleaders can never be in a bad mood when in the spotlight. This definitely comes in handy during lacrosse practice. I am infamous for cheering on my teammates during practice and games. If we are doing 7v7, I cheer on my defenders, but also the offenders when they have nice cuts and passes. During conditioning and sprints when we all feel like dying, "We got this" or "One more ladies, let's go" goes a long way.

Without cheering I would not be me.

2 teams, 7 years, and 40 bows really have an impact on a person. When I tell someone I was a cheerleader the response is, "I'm not surprised," I don't mind it. Cheering is the sole reason I am the person who I came to be. I have no idea what I would have done if I did not cheer. I practiced my cheers everywhere, including the grocery store (which my parents were never a fan of). I can still be caught going through a cheer every now and then. My lacrosse coach gave me a little bow during tryouts to be my grounding object and I am so excited to add it to my collection of bows even if it won't be on display in my room.