I never thought I would be where I am now in my life. I love my life right now. It’s not because of money, or because of materialistic things. It’s because I have people who stand by my side every second of the way, and because I have opportunities a lot of other people may never get to have.
As a little girl, I used to always be the center of attention. I would cry if I didn’t get my way, or if no one was paying attention to me. For example, at my parents wedding I was about 4 years old. While my parents were taking their wedding photos, I was blowing bubbles. The thing is, no one was paying attention to me, or laughing with me while I made bubbles. Once I noticed, I purposely threw out all the liquid to make bubbles and bursted into tears. This brought all the attention to me because now my parents were actually paying attention to me, instead of taking pictures and forgetting about me.
Growing up, I became more accepting of not always being the center of attention.  That didn’t mean I wouldn't stop from loving the attention. I didn’t purposely do things to actually be the center of attention, it just naturally happened. As I got older, I became more and more involved in sports. I ran track for a couple years. I performed pretty well. I was a very good sprinter and very good at the relay races. I tried basketball for a season but did not like it all. Aside from that, I just couldn't understand all the rules. Soccer was the sport I was exceptionally good at. I dont understand why. My father never played a sport. He was in the school marching band. My mom was the captain of the poms team, so she didn't do any contact sports. My older brother was the one that started playing soccer first. Once his coach left, he had no team to play for. Thats where my dad stepped in. He thought he could be the best coach ever. My dad was in his high school marching band, and never played a sport. How does he think he could be the best coach ever? That’s the same question many people asked themselves.
It didn’t take long for people to notice that my dad was actually a very good coach. Soon after my brother’s team grew up, my dad had made about 3 different teams already. That’s where I come in. I’ve always been fascinated by the sport. Of course, I wanted to play for my dad. I mean I have always been a daddy’s girl anyway. So when I decided to play, I was of course, the only girl on the team. In a way I was nervous, but I never once was scared. I wanted to be better than all the guys. I was not going to give up just because I was the only girl, or because the practices and games were harder than expected. My dad was not going to let me quit either.
My dad was the one that pushed me the most. He taught me every little thing I know about soccer today. On the field, he was my coach not my dad. Off the field, we constantly talked about the game of soccer. My dad’s team was the only team I had to play, until I turned 10. Another coach that was close to my dad, had invited the two head coaches from the club he had worked for, and told them to come and watch me play. The two head coaches, Carlos and Sergio, loved the way I played. I guess my dad taught me well. They invited me to join their team. I was going to play a year above my age, but it was ok. I played with boys my whole life, so going against girls who are only one year older than me is nothing. I immediately joined the soccer club, known as Mequon Soccer Club.
After my first year, Carlos, moved me down to my own age, which was also the team he had been coaching. He had told me that the team he was moving me to was one of the stronger teams in the club. Moving me down was the best thing that happened to me. My team is probably the top team in the state of Wisconsin in my age. I started when I was ten years old and I’ve been in the club for about 7 years now. My team has give Mequon Soccer Club a great reputation. We have gone across the country playing in tournaments and although they are not easy, we do very well. We may not win every single tournament, but our team is known very well.
In 2011, my team won the state championship for the first time. The following year, we won it again. In 2013, we lost our title. However, we played the new state champions the following week and redeemed ourselves. We beat the “state champions” 3-0, on our home field, dominating the whole game. In 2014, we gained back our title again winning the state title. My team is very well trained. We are dedicated and determined to keep going. Winning a game is not enough, we push ourselves everyday. To add to our titles, we also won a national title. In 2013, our team went to Florida to compete in a national tournament, and we won.
Winning titles is great, but it’s better if you are able to keep them. If you are able to keep your consistency in the game of play, and titles you win nothing can stop you. That is what my team strives for. The thing that is most exciting about being a part of this team is that we get to travel. For example, the summer of 2015, my team was invited to travel to Argentina to practice and play with the best teams in the country. This is an opportunity no one ever receives. I would have never guessed I would be here in my life. I thank my dad for training me and teaching me everything I know about soccer.  I started loving soccer since I was a little girl, and now, I still love the sport.
Playing soccer allows me to stand out. I’ve always liked to be the center of attention and although soccer is a team sport, I get moments where I can shine and show of who I am. Having my dad teach me everything I know only made me love the sport even more. My dad pushed me harder than anyone else and never gave up on me. Without him, I wouldn’t be where I am today.