The Ending...

As we all grow up we have a particular activity that we follow. The activity that we put all our heart into, all the time necessary in becoming better, and literally all of the blood, sweat, and tears that go into the activity. All of it comes to an end at one point or another. How do we deal with this kind of ending story? Well, it all depends on the person. The person who has been one hundred percent dedicated will either take it badly or just take it as it is.

In other words, this is manly directed to any athlete playing a sport. It does not matter if the sport is cheerleading, chess, wrestling, jump rope, or basketball. Anything you consider a sport is a sport. We all love a sport to the point where we would do anything just to play.

Some play the sport for a lifetime, and others play for a shorter amount of time. But equally they all love the sport dearly.

With my story, well it is a chapter in my life that I will cherish forever. It is the most memorable and also the longest. I first picked up a basketball when I was in the fifth grade. My friend told me to play with him on a youth basketball team and said it would be fun. So, from then on I played basketball basically everyday. Since the first day of picking up a basketball I have played maybe more than a thousand games. A thousand games I have played ranging from little league to the big boys, high school basketball. Many memories were made just from a simple sport and many friends were made from the sport. The sport took many places. I’ve been all over the Navajo Nation, all over Arizona, and visited other states as well just playing the sport I love.

Not only has basketball brought me cherishing memories, it has taught me some life lessons. Life lessons of taking responsibility, becoming a man, and to do everything one hundred percent and always work hard.

Sadly, my basketball career came to an end. Playing my last high school basketball game was one of the hardest games I have ever played. Some of you reading might be thinking “Why was it hard? You can go to the park to play a game or go to the gym anytime and play.” Well it would not be the same. It won’t be the same because there is nothing to play for now. All of the years I’ve been playing I’ve played for a reason, but now that we are not in the playoffs or regional tournament there is nothing else to play for. My last home game was the most difficult because it was my last time playing somewhere I enjoyed and somewhere I felt comfortable. But that last game I could not stay focused. I missed all of my shots. I missed like three three-pointers, an easy lay up, and I had a few turnovers.  All that was on my mind was how would by boys do next year when us seniors are gone. Who will be there to watch over them on and off of the court? Who else is going to push them into playing harder? The whole game I was manly focused on them and began to keep having flashbacks on my four years playing on that court.

Then finally, the fourth quarter had ended and the buzzard went off. With this buzzard it was very different. IT continued to echo, and while it echoed it took me back to when I first started playing basketball for Holbrook. All of the memories of wearing a Holbrook jersey ran through my mind in a split second. There was nothing more I could do then just cry. A burst of uncontrollable tears ran down my face. After four years of playing high school basketball it had ended and seemed as if the four years were only a year. My heart was truly saddened that it had ended, that we could not go to regionals or state playoffs. Because we knew we deserved to be there as one of the top ten teams in the state, but to come up far short of that was the saddest…

Now the only thing to do is play basketball for enjoyment and to stay I shape, I will always love the sport no matter what. I will never forget the journey I took to get this far in the sport.

But everything has to end, that is why they call it The Ending…