I learned some invaluable life lessons from being captain of my high school cross country team. Nearly my whole high school sports career, I considered myself to be mediocre at best. I always came to practice and worked as hard as I possibly could.

I went to every practice, conditioned in the off season, and just genuinely worked as hard as I could. But alas, I was never the fastest runner, no matter how hard I tried. I would often get very discouraged and hated myself for not being as fast as everyone else.

One summer, my team and I went to Camp of Champs, a week long camp specifically designed for cross country teams. While at camp, we worked closely with the team from Liberty Center. Several days into camp, the Liberty Center coach sat me down for a much needed talk. He said he had recognized my work ethic, and had heard how hard I was on myself. He explained to me that he saw exceptional leadership potential in me, and that maybe I wasn't the fastest, but I had the ability to bring the team together, and they listened to and respected me. He told me that it's alright not to be the fastest, as long as you work as hard as you can. He also asked me to use my talents of being kind, responsible, and hard-working, to lead the team. I took his words to heart, and lead the team as a captain for my junior and senior year. My team ended up calling me, "Mamma Han Han" (due to a really long story I can tell later) and they still call me that to this day.

I never did end up being the fastest on the team, but I built an incredible bond with my team.

I still go to their meets, they still listen to my advice, and I still keep in touch with them. In the end, I learned that even though you may not be gifted in one area, if you harness the gifts you were given you will certainly excel. Instead of focusing on where I fell short, I spent my time and energy harnessing and embracing the talents I did have, and formed some incredible bonds along the way that I never would have if I was solely focused on my running ability.