My Dad adjusted the strap on my brand new Reebok helmet and gave me some last second advice as he scooted me out of the locker room behind my teammates. “Don’t worry! Just have fun out there! Most of these kids have been playing a lot longer than you and don’t expect you to be a pro on your first day.”

This didn’t end my worry, but it sure helped to know my dad was at my very first hockey practice to help me through the rough parts. I ran to catch up with Isaiah, the only kid I had met so far. He was also brand new to the sport, so we would spend a lot of time together learning the basics. We took to the ice and I was startled at how different skating in pads was. My legs were wobbly, my blades seemed dull, and I definitely did not have the same control of the puck that I thought I would. This was so discouraging, and almost seemed like the whole night was me getting endlessly frustrated because I had higher hopes for myself. At the end of the practice, the coach called us all in and not only was I tired, I was in pain from all the drills we had done that night. The coach took me and Isaiah up to the front of the team and told everyone to applaud us for our effort and told us how much potential we showed tonight. Overall this was definitely a spirit booster, and I loved the kids that I was going to call teammates over this next year.

This was only 2 years ago. I was 16 when I took up the sport of hockey and I still occasionally play today. The message of this story is that it’s never too late to take up a hobby you are interested in because if you like it enough you’ll be willing to put the work in.