Sophomore year things clicked for me. I was at the peak of everything I’ve ever worked for. But it took some bad before any good could happen. I had been told that I had a knack for writing. Taking a journalism class as a sophomore was obvious. But I couldn’t find any words on the first day of school when I was thrown into the fast paced editing world I had no choice but to be a fast learner to keep up with the juniors and seniors.
It took weeks to finally learn the correct writing style of a journalist and the do’s and don’ts of photography. The teacher decided to send in student articles to national competitions to get our names out there, my mediocre article include. Seven months later, I got the letter. My article had been selected among other students in the country to be published. That summer, I was able to pick up a hard cover copy of “Celebrating What is Important to Me” the Spring 2010 edition with my name and article in dark, black print.
Seeing my name sparked my interest in a journalism career. The fast pace suddenly got me excited to do more for the paper. I now am the photography editor and help the wide-eyed sophomores on their first days. After that first day of Journalism though, keeping up became a trend in my life.
Soon the confidence started building in me and spilled over into my gymnastics career. I have been doing gymnastics for ten years and I had never had an injury until I was 15. Competing on the vault, I threw my skill and landed short. This caused a contusion to the ligaments in my ankle and a hyper-extended ACL. After having to miss multiple competitions, I was cleared to start competing again. With only one meet left before the State Championship, I was forced to throw my basic skills to stay in the game.





Soon after though, I was at the State Championship and competing all four events better than ever.
The adrenaline from being out of the gym so long hit me at just the right time. I finished the meet and received the gold medal on floor exercise. I qualified for the Regional Championship which was two weeks away. It was my first time coming off an injury and I was competing in what felt like the Olympics. Surely I didn’t belong there. Regardless, in the end I earned my spot at the top of the podium.
Towering over everyone, I was the first place Regional Floor Champion. I love the idea of a challenge and taking part in journalism, the school paper, and gymnastics allows me the responsibility to meet deadlines every day. My achievements in the gymnastics world and the academic world have provided me with the opportunity to learn new skills as well as strengths in myself