You know how everyone always had a label in high school? Some kids were the musicians others were more nerdy, but me?

"Oh, I'm an athlete."

My life as I knew it was over. When high school ended, so did my life in sports. That’s not to say I sit on the couch and watch Netflix for fun now. I still love to go out and mess around with a soccer ball, play catch or just do something athletic(ish) with my friends. It’s hard though, for as long as I can remember, I always considered myself to be an athlete. No matter the season, there were always practices to go to, off season training to stay in shape, or just running for fun. FOR FUN. Oh how things have changed… Weeknights in high school consisted of practices and team dinners. You want to hang out Saturday? Sorry, Saturdays are booked for soccer games, swim meets, followed by lunch or dinner out with my teammates, and sleep – lots of sleep. Not only did I have my high school teams, but I was a part of club teams too. Don’t forget when your sports would overlap for a month. There’s nothing better than explaining to your coach you have to leave swim practice early so you can catch the last half of soccer practice. Or better yet, explaining to them how you injured your knee at soccer practice right before swim state prelims. This was my life, it was beautiful and I loved it.

So much of who I was and how I lived my life was wrapped up in athletics. I lived for the practices, for the meets, and especially for my friends, some of which became like family. It was a shock when I came to college. Without soccer or swim I wasn’t exactly sure what to do with myself. Yes, there are a lot of intramural sports teams to join or you could become a gym rat, but nothing quite compares to the comradery and pure enjoyment of high school athletics. A lot of people asked me why I never joined my college swim or soccer team. A college sport is a major commitment, almost a full time job at some schools. I decided while I loved soccer and swimming and could have competed with enough dedication, I was not willing to commit to that level. There are so many other experiences to be had out in the world!

It’s one of those times where you don’t appreciate it, how much you love it, till it’s gone. You are absolutely done with going to two-a-day practices. Done because you’ve run so many sprints that you are one more set away from revisiting that taco you had for lunch. You definitely won’t miss Christmas break hell week practices. Nope, won’t miss any of this. Then you get to college.

I miss the dinners where I was able to go back for seconds and thirds without calculating how much I’ll have to work out after; I most certainly miss being able to eat pretty much whatever I wanted to and still look good in almost everything. I miss being able to fall asleep in 5 minutes because it was sprint day at practice. I miss living out of my duffel bag or the back of my car because there was never time to go home between everything. I miss the smell of the grass from the field and the smell of chlorine on everything I own. I miss it all. I can honestly say some of the best and most memorable times of my life happened as an athlete. This time will always be that – memorable. I’m so thankful for the coaches that pushed me not only as an athlete, but cared about my character and who I was as a person. I’m thankful for the friendships I made, some will last forever. I’m thankful that being an athlete taught me more than just how to do the perfect give-and-go pass or flip turn, but taught me actual life skills such as discipline and working with others, whether you get along or not.

So who am I? I used to identify as an athlete, but now? Now I’m that quirky kid who learned life is about so much more. I’m a friend, a coworker, a student, a writer and whatever else I decide to pursue. Most importantly, I’ve been reminded that I am a child of God. My identity never was or should have been wrapped around anything else because in Him is the only place my identity can truly be found. So while life as I have always known it may be over, this next chapter is going to be even better.