Reflection #10

In Hero, the coach tells Thom that he can no longer be on the team because of his illness. I think it was a hard decision for him to make, but he made it in order to cover himself. If my coach were to break this type of news to me I would feel absolutely shut down. It would be hard to give up a sport you love because of an illness or injury. I kind of fall into a similar situation, but the only difference is that I was able to return. The summer before my senior year I went to a basketball camp with my team. I was doing a layup when a girl literally took me out of the air and I tore my ACL. It was hard to for me to hear the news that my ACL was torn and I immediately thought my sports career was over. I did end up missing my entire volleyball season but I worked really hard to get back for basketball. A typical ACL injury takes 4-6 months to heal and I was released at exactly 4 months on the day of my first basketball. I worked really hard to make sure I didn’t miss anything. While Thom was no longer able to play he still gave it everything he could and played as hard as he could against Goran. As for my parents, if I were in this situation they would probably murder my coach. My family has always been heavily involved in sports and I think it would be equally hard for them to accept that I couldn’t play sports anymore.

                Ruth is telling Thom that he needs to live life in the moment and not just wait for things to happen. Thom is waiting for the perfect opportunity and it almost inhibits him from doing the things he needs to. It is like he is living in an alternate reality, like he is waiting for Uberman to sweep him off of his feet and something glorious to happen. When I think about Thom and the League it makes me think of my career opportunities. Often times I hear people’s success stories about how they talked to so and so and then got a job. Or they did some shadowing and meet this person who gave them an opportunity. Or they tried something out and absolutely hated it and went on to something else and it was meant for them. I feel as if I have always been waiting for my opportunity. I find that I am worried about what my future and I constantly wonder when my magic opportunity is going to present itself. With that being said, I ended up talking to Stephanie Kinkaid in the Wackerle Center about how I was changing my careers and she worked really hard to get me an internship this summer working for Student Affairs. Once she told me the news I thought maybe this is the opportunity that I am looking for. But as long as you can find the things in life that make you happy then you shouldn’t be constantly waiting. I believe that everyone is truly in charge of their happiness. It is all about your frame of mind and how you go about things. If you wake up in the morning and think that it is going to be a shitty day then it probably will be. It is up to you find enjoyment in the little things in life. I am also an optimist so that could be a reason that I am always happy, but at the same time life is too short to not be happy.

                While I do think this happens for most people, I think it is up to them to create the opportunities for themselves. In order to achieve something like this you have to work really hard but at the same time you need to be reputable. I believe that this may have already happened to me. Like I said previously when I tore my ACL, I couldn’t play volleyball. It was a tough time when it was my senior game and I couldn’t play, not to mention I was the only senior on the team. Well, for volleyball after you score a point or get an ace we usually say some sort of dumb cheer. Well at one point in time the girls started saying my last name after each point. This was something that deeply moved me. Then, the crowd caught on and started cheering with them. At the end of the game as I was once again honored the entire crowd stood and chanted my name. Then after that they all came over and either patted me on the back or gave me a hug. It was really nice to know that my school cared about me and there to support me. I don’t think that I have ever been so moved or felt so well respected. I am pretty sure I cried for over an hour. It was absolutely amazing. I think I gained a lot from this moment. It taught me to love and sport my teammates. It showed me that if you are hardworking and something bad happens people will still be there for you no matter what. I think it also taught me to appreciate the small things and all my friends and family. It was a great moment in my life.

                Since I am one of the biggest suckers for romance I do believe that there is a perfect first kiss. I don’t think that it feels magical or like seeing fireworks, I think it just feels right. I don’t think sparks fly because you are too caught up in the moment to even think about what is going on. I think the perfect kiss leaves you struck and in awe. It makes you craving more as the butterflies rush into your stomach. I think it is a moment of total elation. And yes, like Thom I have had crushes on famous figures. Mine would have to be Tom Cruise in Top Gun. First off that movie is freaking amazing and he is absolutely gorgeous. I think it is the character that they embody that we are attracted to and since they are playing it we crush on them. I think it is perfectly natural, as long as it doesn’t turn into an obsession.