Dear Journal,

Today I got assigned a ten page research paper and an article to write in English that will both eventually consume my entire life. Even better than that, Mother Nature decided to come early. To put the cherry on top of everything, I have softball practice every day after school for 3 hours followed by games on Tuesday and Friday nights. School is school and assignments are supposed to be given but I do not understand why it has to be so dang hard on me as a student athlete. I guess that is one of the pricks of being a student athlete but let me just say that it is harder to manage than some people may realize. Other students truly do not realize how difficult it is to balance tedious school work with a passion, but without the grades on the school work, the passion does not exist.

As a student athlete, I am supposed to be a leader and not a follower. I do understand that but I am also eighteen years old and very hormonal. The way I feel it should be as a teenage girl is sports, boys, food, work, and then very last is school. But unfortunately it does not work that way. My day really only consists of two major things, school and sports. School work first and then once I go through hell every day for seven hours its out to the softball field I go for 3 more hours. Some people might ask why I complain about practicing my passion, but the actual truth to that is most students do not understand how mentally and physically exhausted a body can get. Sure, I have had this schedule for all four years of high school and I should be used to it by now but it just keeps getting harder as I get older. I cannot begin to explain how much I wish I could be in bed by eight o’ clock every night. Waking up at six thirty every morning is just not ideal when you’re a student athlete, for we need as much rest as possible to get our brains functioning correctly. Boys on the other hand just tend to make a teenage girl’s life even harder and more confusing than it should be. Boys add a higher level of stress to life than necessary. We girls always tend to worry about the small things that boys do or do not do but hey we can’t help it, that’s the way we were made! As a senior, I am expected to be a leader to the younger players on the softball team. I basically have three roles, juggling school work, staying physically fit, and making sure the younger players are doing what they should. There are pros of being a student athlete and the feeling I have when my wins a game or has reached a goal is indescribable, but the best thing about being a student athlete is having people look up to me. Just the fact of knowing that someone looks up to me makes me want to be a better person and that is the greatest compliment I can get!

Sometimes when it’s been “one of those days” I get home from school and go directly to my game room to watch television and take the edge off of things. Though life as a student life is difficult, I would really like to know how some people go without sports because after a stressful day, playing my passion is the best thing I could do. The feeling of a long hard day with a good night’s rest after is the best feeling ever! Some may call me crazy but what can I say?! I love my crazy stressful life!