In high school, cheerleading was my go-to. It was my SPORT, something that I loved and that I could keep to myself and no one could take it away from me. Until graduation.

Cheerleading over the years put me in the best shape I had ever been in my life. It made me work harder for something bigger than me. I loved being part of the team and having those people I could trust with my life. Now that I've graduated, it's like I have no direction. I wasn't talented enough to try out for my college team but I certainly love watching them at the games. I, and other cheerleaders in the crowd are the only ones who know. We know about the countless sweat, blood, tears, and hairspray that we spent over this sport.

Cheerleaders spend hours with their teammates every day and literally put their lives in other's hands. I've seen girls get plenty of broken bones and torn muscles to say that it was just boys throwing girls in the air. It takes talent, precision, a lot of guts, and a lot of trust.

Without my teammates, I feel like I've lost my second family, but I know they'll always be there for me in spirit. Now that I am not a cheerleader, I find it hard to motivate myself to go to the gym and I've quickly lost a lot of my flexibility and I am definitely not in shape anymore. It's hard to lose that. It definitely has brought my self-esteem down now that I have gained all the weight back that cheerleading kept off. It's weird not finishing with classes and then going to practice. It's weird to think that I won't be wearing a cute skirt anymore.

But I love to sit in that crowd and cheer those men and women on because I know exactly how they feel and what they go through on a daily basis. They work so hard for what they love and to support our school, so I work hard to cheer them on.