It's the Hard that Makes it Great

When I was little, my dad introduced me to the movie, A League of Their Own. Even though I was young, I understood everything that was going on, and was able to grasp the meaning of the movie.  For those who haven’t seen it, it is about the beginning of women’s baseball, and how everyone took it as a joke at first.  It is actually very moving and I highly recommend it.  One of my favorite quotes, and one that I lived by throughout my years of gymnastics is actually from this movie.  It says, “It’s supposed to be hard. If it wasn’t hard, everyone would do it.  The hard…is what makes it great.” This quote is said by the women’s baseball coach to one of his players that wanted to quit because she thought it was getting too hard for her. 

         My dad would always say this whenever I was feeling discouraged or even just had a bad practice.  It was a constant reminder that I was excelling in one of the most difficult sports in the world.  And yes, I truly believe that gymnastics is the hardest sport in the world.  It may not seem it when you watch it on TV because the gymnasts make it look easy however the amount of effort that goes into making it look effortless is insurmountable.  It assured me that I was one gifted with this talent for a sport as difficult as gymnastics, and that I never wanted to give it up or let it defeat me.  From the age of 6 until the age of 14 I considered myself extremely lucky when it came to injuries.  I hadn’t gotten injured once in those 8 years, which is very difficult to do. Gymnastics is an incredibly dangerous sport and it is near impossible to avoid an injury throughout our career. It wasn’t until I was 14 years old, as a freshman in high school that I experienced my first injury.