As I start wrapping up my final year of doing a sport I’ve always loved, every memory starts to flash back. I’ve run with this same school for my whole life from club track at RCK to States my senior year.

When I started running varsity in 7th grade, I found an event that felt tailored to me and I felt connected to. This event was high jump.  I high jumped all throughout highschool. I found great success from this event. One of my best memories was at state qualifiers my freshman year. I jumped a height of 6’0’” and made my name well known in the track community and the school. I remember everyone on my team crowding and hugging me; even my coach who gave me tough love for all my years was tearing up. I looked up into the stands to see my mom, who was jumping up and down screaming and that hit deep for me making it one of my favorite memories of track. 

As I write my story, I realize that every memory wasn’t positive. One of my most difficult and emotional days was just this past February. During the winter season’s State Quals, I failed. I underperformed in high jump due to constant ankle injuries and failed my 4×4 by not catching other teams as the anchor leg. I remember walking out of the Suffolk County Community College Track and sitting in the freezing cold and the snow, and cried. I cried for an hour and it didn’t get much easier later that night where I broke down and cried myself to sleep. This sport has meant the world to me, and to see myself fail in my senior year at an event I’ve been doing for years just struck a nerve. 

Looking back at all my time and this night, I realize I forgot why I even started this sport in the first place. Although this has become a giant part of my life, I joined this sport for fun. I forgot I needed to have fun. Looking at these people who have seen me grow and mature, I forgot to have fun with them. It’s clear that through all my lows and highs, my teammates and coaches were always there and felt like a second family to me. Even kids from other schools I have grown close with make it feel like this one big family. Some of my closest friendships have sprouted from this sport. But I was so serious and stressed about rankings, college, and medals that I forgot what was most important.  I wanted to be remembered and make a difference within Section 11, and although I found a lot of success, at points I didn’t have fun. The only way I had fun was by winning. Winning was nice, but no one talks about how much the losses hurt.  It was a grind and even a struggle at times: I ran with injuries and made them worse. Fun was never in the picture, and it’s a shame it took me all these years to understand that. I had to lighten up on myself and lift this heavy weight off my chest. 

After that night at Suffolk, I made a change in my mindset and attitude. 

I started my spring season with a clear mind and wiped everything bad that’s happened in the past. I needed to make this season different and it was so much better. I’m smiling no matter if I do good or bad, and I already started seeing positive changes in performance such as breaking my older brother’s school record in the 400 Meter Hurdles and my own record in the 400 Meter Dash. I got along with my teammates and laughed non stop on bus rides after a long meet. 

To anyone who does a sport, always remember why you started this sport in the first place, and never get to a point where you don’t love the sport anymore. Thank you East Islip Track for years of great memories and for making my senior season one of the best.