There you are, playing the game you love to play the most. You suit up for every game. You put on your cleats hoping that more than anything you will get to play today, even if it is just for a couple innings. You pray before every game that your team will jump ahead quick, so you will have the opportunity to get to walk up to the plate. After the excitement of a win of a close game wears off, you realize that you didn’t even get the tiniest bit dirty. You become discouraged. You arrive 15 minutes early to practice, you give 100%, you do everything that is ever asked of you, yet it seems that no one seems to ever notice that. By the end of the season you realize that you might have played a total of 7 innings, your batting average is great because you were only up to bat three times, and everyone is remembering that ball that went between your legs, because that was the only time you were on the field. You think that no one sees you, because who could see the girl that is never on the field?

Well, I see you. I notice you. I was you. But, I am not you anymore. That time in my life fueled a fire in me. Let it fuel the fire in you. My strengths didn’t lie where the other girls on the team strengths were. I wasn’t the fastest runner, I didn’t have the quickest bat, and I scared myself out of making diving catches. But, I did have the ability to make people laugh. I had, and still have, the ability to help someone know it's okay when they make a mistake. In my years of playing softball I learned lessons that are going to serve me far better than a high batting average. Work ethic, dedication, teamwork, and communication are just the beginning of the list. All of those things that I learned when I played ball are still in me. They fuel me to make myself better at everything I do. I never want to be the girl on the bench again.

You see, it doesn’t matter if it's sports, school, sorority, or work, I keep going. I continue to give 100%. I continue to do what is asked of me without complaints. You will be noticed when its time. That time will come. You will be known for your work ethic, your dedication, and your strengths. It probably won’t be tomorrow, it might not be next week, next month, or even next year, but one day it will finally be your day. Ride it out, keep your head high, and never give up something you love because you don’t get to do it as much as you would like. Maybe it’s the universes way of telling you “something better is about to come along.”