Gymnastics was the first love of my life. Our relationship was strong, beautiful, rewarding, challenging, and painful all at the same time. And ending this relationship, with the sport I adore so much, is still to this day one of my biggest regrets. Unfortunately, I allowed my fear to hold me back. I allowed myself to give up too easily. Looking back, I wish I would've pushed through that fear instead of allowing it to end my gymnastics career. However, I'm a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. And although my gymnastics career ended prematurely, I took many things away from the sport that helped shape me into the person I am today. Gymnastics teaches a person much more than what meets the public eye. Gymnastics is more complex than just simply learning how to do flips on a beam or floor, or how to execute crazy release moves on bars...which is a difficult task in itself. But along with the complexity of the skills you must attempt to perfect, gymnastics teaches you important lessons that you can put to use in your day-to-day life. Gymnastics teaches you commitment, it teaches you to be driven, to persevere through fear and pain, to work your butt off to achieve your goals, to always give 110%, and to be humble, regardless of whether a situation ends up in your favor or not.

My love for this beautiful sport sparked when I was only five years old, taking recreational classes in Olathe, Kansas. A year or so later, my family moved to Jenks, Oklahoma, and that's when things began to get more serious. My heart was set on doing gymnastics when we moved here, so my mom took me to a local gym for recreational classes. After my first class, they suggested I try out for their "Hot Shots" team, which was more advanced and prepared the young "Hot Shot" gymnasts to try out for the competitive team. Short months later, I made the Level 4 team and this marked the beginning of my competitive gymnastics career.

I competed as a Jenks gymnast for seven years; and during this time, I spent anywhere from sixteen to over twenty hours a week in the gym training. This caused me to miss out on things like birthday parties, sleepovers, playing other sports, close friendships with people from school, etcetera...because I was always at the gym. But I wouldn't go back and change a single thing. I was committed to gymnastics. Anyone who has ever done gymnastics or coached a competitive gymnastics team knows how unbelievably time-consuming this sport is; it requires serious commitment and dedication. The gym often becomes your home away from home, and your coaches and teammates become your second family. Without a doubt in my mind, I can say that this sport, along with the coaches who worked with me every single day, have shaped me into the person I am today.

Throughout my gymnastics career, I had the opportunity to work with and learn from several different coaches. Each of these individuals imparted their wisdom and offered me constructive feedback daily, which in turn shaped me into a better gymnast and person. I never could have reached the level of success that I did without the constant encouragement and guidance that my coaches provided me with throughout my gymnastics career. They always knew what to say when I was having a bad day or being too hard on myself...and most importantly, my coaches never gave up on me. I was extremely fortunate to be surrounded with coaches and teammates who cared about me not only as a gymnast, but as a person. These individuals have had such a significant impact on my life, and I will never be able to thank them enough for everything they taught me.

Two of my greatest role models are my former gymnastics coaches: Colleen VanZee and Ken Hensley. Unfortunately, these two incredible individuals have passed...but not a day goes by that I don't think about them both. Colleen VanZee was my first competitive gymnastics coach, and she was one of the kindest souls I have ever known. Although she only coached me for one season, she helped grow my love for gymnastics, and made a significant difference in my life. Ken Hensley was hands-down one of the best, sweetest, funniest men I have ever known. I was blessed to have him as a coach for the last four years of my gymnastics career; he always knew how to make me laugh on my bad days and he never gave up on me. Coach Colleen and Coach Hensley were the two best coaches I have ever had, and I hope that someday I can impact the lives of my gymnasts the way they did mine. They hold a special place in my heart, and I wish I would have thanked them more for everything they did for me when I had the opportunity to do so.

So I guess what I'm trying to say is...gymnasts, thank your coaches. Thank them for everything they sacrifice to come to the gym and coach you everyday. Thank them for not only caring about your success in the gym, but your success outside of the gym. Thank them for the life lessons they teach you daily through their coaching. Thank them for doing everything in their power to keep you safe, and encouraging you to keep pushing yourself when you are having an off day. Thank them for never giving up on you.

HUGE thank you to my former coaches: Coach Lori, Coach Shanan, Coach Kari, Coach Jamie, Coach Stacy, Coach Taryn, Coach Alicia, Coach Anni, Coach Alex & Neptali.

In memory of: Coach Colleen & Coach Hensley. Thank you for everything; I love you both!