Growing up, my childhood was spent entirely on a field, on a court or in a gym. I tried EVERY sport that I possibly could – swimming, gymnastics, basketball, soccer, golf, softball, volleyball, and a few tries at tennis (though I avoided sports that required excessive cardio at all costs). Through the years of tournaments, long practices, and team sleepovers, I made some of the greatest memories of my life. I can't imagine a childhood that wasn't surrounded by sports. All this being said, some of the greatest memories that have come from my athletic life were because of those teammates that became my best friends.
To be honest, I wasn't in it to make friends at first. When I was really young and playing tee-ball and 5u soccer, I was there because my parents had signed me up for the season. (Because, let's be honest, pee-wee sports were way more fun for parents than they were for us.) What I didn't realize at the time is that most of the girls on those teams would be ones that I grew up playing with for the next few years. Seeing them just at practice turned into going over to each other's houses after games or having sleepovers the nights before tournaments or meets. I went from just knowing their names to knowing that they didn't like pretzels or that they were scared of feet. Eventually, we started hanging out outside of the gym or field and making even more inside jokes together. As we grew up, we would talk about things like what sports we would try out for in high school, what we would do when we got our licenses, and what we wanted to be when we grew up. Then, all of a sudden, we did. We eventually said our goodbyes and headed off to different colleges to pursue different things.
That's not where it stops, though. The best part of making friends is that it never stops. For the rest of my life, I will compare new friends to those best friends I made through my years as an athlete. I know what a true friend is because those girls have held my hand through the blood, sweat, and tears throughout the years. I know that they will always back me up, just like they did when they were covering a throw to first base or getting a rebound I should have had. I know they will stand beside me when I say "I do" just like they stood beside me while the national anthem played before our first and our final games together.
Through the wins and losses of the game and of life, they stuck by my side through it all. Though we might not see each other every day anymore, one thing will always bind us- the love of the game. And that's a strong, unbreakable bond.
