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The performance of stress
The performance of stress
The performance of stress
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It was breezy day. The clear, light sky was breathtaking. Almost too gorgeous to foreshadow the disastrous day. It was on a tennis tournament on Saturday morning. I had confidence in my own abilities on that tennis court. As if I was Serena Williams ,the greatest tennis player of this century, and would win the whole tournament. I thought about my strengths and not my weaknesses on the bus ride to the tournament. Like my unpredictable serve, backhand strokes and killer volleys (that end points in an instant). But I still had weaknesses and make mistakes. The tournament started and our first match was against a school called Prairie Ridge. Our coach had told us the biggest competitor of the day was Prairie Ridge and maybe Sandburg (some years
It was a Saturday afternoon, and I was at golf practice. It was a gorgeous day. The sun was out, there was just a slight breeze, and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. No one could have asked for a better day.
Forty seconds left until game time. Here we go again, versing one of our biggest rivals, Belleville West. As usual, I’m starting. Defense has always been my go to position and this year I’m playing right back. The air around us is cold, considering we aren’t quite in spring yet. Eleven of us disperse on to the field, all in blue, determined to win. The referee blows his whistle, piercing our ears, and twenty two pairs of feet stir into action. Our back line is staring at the ball move towards the goal when suddenly things turn around. Hurriedly we shift to the left, ensuring the ball is put to a stop. Hannah boots the ball up the long green field and we’re all hopeful. West is playing hard; aggressive is their style. They win possession. Back
“Where are you from?” The question for me, has always been conflicting. You would ask my mom and dad the question and they would not hesitate for a second before letting “Beledweyne,” or “Somalia.” fall from their mouths. All my other siblings who were born in America would probably answer the question with “Mankato,” or “Eagle Lake,” maybe even “Minnesota.” and not put any thought into it. I however have put plenty of thought into in. Maybe too much thought.
Early Saturday, August 19th, 2017 morning when my friend Bailey and I arrived to the adventurous Cedar Point ; which is located in Sandusky, Ohio, USA. I was wearing a pink shirt, shorts, and a black pair of shoes. The skies were big and blue, and the sun casted a warmth feeling. The air had a mouth warming feeling, and had the smell of fresh foods in the distance. People had big smiles on their face of enjoyment while others looked nervous or frightened. As I waited in line for the Millennium Force, there were butterflies flying around in my stomach. When I sat in my seat and the clanking of the chains lifted me up the big hill, the waves in the lake were dancing with the wind. We reached the top a cool breeze brushed along my arms, and in a blink of an eye, we were going downhill and all around in twisted movements. I got of the ride and a train was passing by. The fumes from the train were strong and gave a heavy smell of iron as is passed on by. The
One of my strongest memories of our time in Iowa was from the first few weeks that we lived in the rental house. We had moved from the gigantic Georgia house into the cramped, smelly rental house. This move felt really different than the last one. We always knew that we would move but I don’t think that we envisioned us living in Iowa. Ammon was bored (which is never a good sign), Jaci seemed indifferent (which was a pretty good sign) and I was pretty on edge. One day Jaci, Ammon, and I started fighting about something, I don’t remember what, I vaguely remember it being related to the bathroom. Being the good mother that you are, you stopped the fight but it was too late for me; the cumulative effect of everything that had happened over the
Alex is now 21 and lives in Iowa. He still continues to carry on his no bullying act. Alex started in freshman year of highschool even though it was after he got out of middle school where he got bullied, he still felt that the other millions around the world needed to be stood up for. He has been working on the project for 9 years and does not plan to give it up anytime soon. Alex was bullied by the kids he used to be friends with. “Most of the kids on the bus, I knew from elementary school, and we were good friends then, but then in middle school, everything changes, and it’s all about popularity and who dresses the bet and who has the best hair . I was not the kid with the best hair.” He would be bullied everyday weather it was at the bus
As I sat in the boiling hot sun, the heat that had overwhelmed me throughout the day surpassed. I was engulfed by Lu Paul, a native Hawaiian advocate who was telling me the story of how Native Hawaiians loss their rights. “How did my people become a minority in their own land?” he asked me inquisitively. I found myself making many connections with this man’s story and my own. As he answered my questions about inequality in his community, he began to speak of many things that I had witnessed in my life, that I thought only my own culture experienced. “My people need to fight for equal education, language rights, and employment”, he stated firmly. It was in this moment I began to broaden my perspective of inequality and minority rights. This along with the many other field experiences I had during my semester abroad, help shape my desire to attend law school and work both nationally and abroad in civil and human rights.
Have you ever looked off a gigantic cliff? Now imagine traveling 30 miles per hour on a bike with curvy roads with enormous cliffs on your side with no rails. This is exactly what I did with my family when we went to Colorado. From the hotel we drove to a bike tour place to take us to the summit of Pikes Peak. After we arrived at the building we saw pictures of how massive the cliffs were, but what terrified me was the fact they had no side rails. This observation was thrilling as well as terrifying. It was an odd mix of emotions, but I loved the adrenaline rush it gave me. My dad whispered to me, “ This will be absolutely horrifying”.
Being born and raised in “The Paris of the Plains” was certainly a blessing in disguise. I am genuinely thankful for the gracious gift of world class barbecue along with a world class sports team. Watching the one and only Kansas City Royals take home the crown while savoring a side of Smoked Chicken Gumbo was something I will cherish for the rest of my life. Wonderful moments like these come and go, but some tend to stay. As history was in the making, the campus of UMKC was there to witness it all. Located in the heart of Kansas City, it most definitely rivals the phenomenal barbecue and entertainment. The campus itself is a work of art to marvel at. However, the School of Medicine is another world in itself. Its prestige is not only recognized
As I stepped out of the car and onto the road I looked up to see the peak of the Pillbox Hike, also known as the Ka’iwa Ridge Trail. The sun was still hiding behind the Ko’olau Mountains, which encircled the town of Kailua and the windward side of O’ahu. Back home on the Big Island I had a lot of things on my mind such as, school, work and family problems. It was the summer before senior year and even though it wasn’t months from now I was already stressed about it; the schoolwork, socializing and senioritis. There was also the thought of having to go back to work with my unbearable manager and the piles of bills my parents were having trouble with. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to face the responsibilities, I just wanted to get away, even if it was only for a week, so I came to O’ahu. Here, I was with my older sister Jossevey. She was only 3 years older than me but more of a kid at heart. She was the reason we were about to hike this long trail, even though I’ve never really hiked before.
The frontier is as boring as a blank piece of paper. Though I have always considered myself brave and daring, I believe this frontier is fiercer than me. Although we are thriving now, the first few months were an absolute disgrace. In the beginning, food was scarce and life was terrifying; I never felt so alone. I have not slept well since we left New Jersey. But, enough from boring, old me; you are probably dying to hear about how my life has turned upside-down!
That day I learned something so important that has changed my everyday life. With everything I do and work hard on, I try to believe I can do the task before I start. Confidence helps one to never stop trying. I will never stop competing to retain my ranking. Every moment since that day, when I step on to the tennis court, I remember my past prideful days and I hope to prove that I haven’t peaked, and my best day of tennis is in the future. After all, my coach always educated me “life is like the graph of a sinusoidal function. It has its crests and troughs and though I hit a trough early on in my tennis career, a crest is sure to
It was another boring day in Tulsa, Oklahoma because there are no kids my age. I am 9 now with my five older brothers that were born a day apart, and my brothers are now eighteen. We are a poor family, so my brothers and I got home schooled , But since they are older they take turns homeschooling me. I would be in 4th grade so my brothers try to teach me what I would learn in 4th grade. I live with my brothers because my parents died when I was one, and my brothers were 10. We had to go to an orphanage for 8 years before my brothers could legally adopt me.
At last we had brought all our practicing skills into work at the final stages. After working hard for three solid months it all paid off, the competing mat was beneath our feet. It was as if I could almost hear the girl?s hearts thumping before we walked onto the mat. I couldn?t stop smiling, I had the biggest grin on my face as if I were the cat who just ate the canary. Only when I thought that was enough, my facial expressions were amazing, all the nights I spent in front of the mirror or watching my self through the reflection of the glass door in my kitchen. It?s hard to go first because watching all the other teams compete makes you think, how did I do?
The score was 14-15. My team was losing the sectional championship game by just one point. Now we had to give our all to win, or we would be regretting the loss for years to come. In order to win, we had to get along with everyone on, and off, the volleyball court. We had to believe in ourselves, but most of all, we had to use all of the competitive skills that we had learned throughout our lives from parents, coaches, and our own experiences.