{"id":4501,"date":"2020-05-08T15:02:55","date_gmt":"2020-05-08T19:02:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/?p=4501"},"modified":"2020-05-08T15:02:55","modified_gmt":"2020-05-08T19:02:55","slug":"respect-the-process-and-the-strength-to-quit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/?p=4501","title":{"rendered":"&#8220;Respect The Process&#8221; , and &#8220;The Strength To Quit&#8221;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Feb-scaled.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-4502\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Feb-272x300.jpg?resize=272%2C300&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"272\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Feb-scaled.jpg?resize=272%2C300&amp;ssl=1 272w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Feb-scaled.jpg?resize=927%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 927w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Feb-scaled.jpg?resize=768%2C848&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Feb-scaled.jpg?resize=1390%2C1536&amp;ssl=1 1390w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Feb-scaled.jpg?resize=1854%2C2048&amp;ssl=1 1854w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Feb-scaled.jpg?resize=1140%2C1259&amp;ssl=1 1140w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Feb-scaled.jpg?resize=552%2C610&amp;ssl=1 552w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Feb-scaled.jpg?w=2000&amp;ssl=1 2000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 272px) 100vw, 272px\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Sep-scaled.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-4503\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Sep-272x300.jpg?resize=272%2C300&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"272\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Sep-scaled.jpg?resize=272%2C300&amp;ssl=1 272w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Sep-scaled.jpg?resize=927%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 927w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Sep-scaled.jpg?resize=768%2C848&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Sep-scaled.jpg?resize=1390%2C1536&amp;ssl=1 1390w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Sep-scaled.jpg?resize=1854%2C2048&amp;ssl=1 1854w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Sep-scaled.jpg?resize=1140%2C1259&amp;ssl=1 1140w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Sep-scaled.jpg?resize=552%2C610&amp;ssl=1 552w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Rachel-Sep-scaled.jpg?w=2000&amp;ssl=1 2000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 272px) 100vw, 272px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><strong>By Rachel Applegate<\/strong><br \/>\nFocus<br \/>\nMidland HS<br \/>\n1st Place Division 1-2, News Writing<br \/>\nSports Columnist<\/p>\n<p><b>JUDGING CRITERIA<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sharp attention-getting lead<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Expresses personal opinion; uses consistent style; demonstrates knowledge of sports<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Reflects thought\/research, freshness, individuality; avoids cliches<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Effective use of facts\/quotes or supportive material<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Informative, interesting, entertaining<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Upholds journalistic integrity<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sentences, paragraphs of varied length; written clearly, concisely and vividly<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Proper diction\/grammar<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s2\">I<\/span>\u2019ve never been a patient person and I don\u2019t think I ever will be. The main thing I don\u2019t have patience for is myself. I\u2019ve learned that not having patience is one of the worst traits you can have for yourself, especially in sports. I play the sport that probably requires the most patience, golf. Those who play golf know it\u2019s not something that you can just pick up overnight. It\u2019s something that takes years to learn. However, being the impatient person that I am, I didn\u2019t want to wait to get good. I wanted to be good right away. Let\u2019s just say that didn\u2019t happen.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">Watching someone learn how to play golf is painful. Sometimes I would swing ten times and miss the ball every time, I\u2019d take divots out of the ground until there was only dirt left. I would watch other people swing, wishing I could hit a fraction of that.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">Playing high school golf was no exception to testing my patience. A few weeks in, the coach asked me to play with Varsity to see how I\u2019d I compare to them. I was so nervous I forgot how to swing the club. I completely blew it. I stopped taking practice swings and just started whacking at it because I wanted to go home.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">Sophomore year came around and the coach gave me another chance to play with Varsity. I blew it once again. My coach expected a much lower score and much better season, but that didn\u2019t happen. Of course I\u2019d hit the ball well at practice when it doesn\u2019t count. But at matches, I couldn\u2019t even hit half the distance I did at practice. Overall, my sophomore year ended no better than my freshman year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">So far, this year has been a roller coaster. I spent every day at the range over the summer because I was determined to be on Varsity. I didn\u2019t want to be that Junior on JV. I was hitting the best I ever had and was ready for my qualifying match. This time I didn\u2019t blow it. I actually did really well, and my score was good enough for Varsity. Finally, it was happening. All my hard work was starting to pay off, but that only lasted a week. One day at practice, my swing was gone once again. I had my first Varsity match the day after. I had the second worst score of the entire match.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">I came home that day in hysterics. I don\u2019t know if I\u2019ve ever cried so hard in my life. Seeing my score posted with my name next to it was complete and utter embarrassment. I wanted to quit right then, but I didn\u2019t. Being mad wasn\u2019t going to solve anything. I honestly just made things worse.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">Soon after my match, I had lessons with a PGA Pro. My swing has completely changed. However things didn\u2019t get better right away. Golf is an inconsistent game and without a doubt, I know there will be a lot more failures. Like my coach has said, \u201cBe patient, it\u2019s a process.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">As hard as it is to put everything behind you, I finally learned the only way to get better is to simply respect the process.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s2\">T<\/span>he word <i>quitter <\/i>is used out of context more times than not. It\u2019s a word that\u2019s thrown around in sports left and right, when it doesn\u2019t need to be. It\u2019s a term that is seen as weak, yet hurtful. I understand that there are true quitters in this world, but I\u2019m not one of them.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">I played soccer for most of my life, but to this day I don\u2019t know why. I played from ages 4-15, six of those years being travel. At one time, I loved the game, the people, and everything about it. But that was only through elementary school.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">By the time middle school hit, I was over soccer. I was burned out and before I knew it, I hated it. I hated every practice, every game, and every tournament. I was miserable. I came home crying every day because I couldn\u2019t stand it anymore. I couldn\u2019t stand the fact that I was wasting my time on something I wasn\u2019t even good at. I couldn\u2019t stand the fact that I would drive hours to a game only to sit the bench. I never felt more out of place or self-conscious in my entire life. Everything I seemed to do was wrong. I would come home from running suicides so out of breath that my inhaler wouldn\u2019t even begin to touch my asthma. It tasted like I was putting hair spray down my throat.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">I\u2019ve always been the type of person to try my hardest in whatever I do; but at that point, I just couldn\u2019t do it anymore. But how could I quit? I\u2019d spent my entire life devoted to this sport, just to walk away. My years of training, just for nothing. I didn\u2019t want to be that one person who quits, but after years of thinking about it, what if I was the only person who truly listened to themselves? I tried to ignore the fact that I was miserable for years, thinking it would get better if I just did one more season, but it never did.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">Freshman year was the final straw. I realized it was time to be done. All the pain, drama, and hate culminated into my decision not to come back the following year. It truly didn\u2019t matter what other people thought, it was about what I thought. Looking back, I feel bad for the girl I used to be, a girl who was so concerned with what people thought that it made her hate herself. I couldn\u2019t change the way other people saw me, but I could change the way that I saw myself. I have learned that walking away is sometimes the healthiest thing you can do for yourself. There\u2019s nothing wrong, weak, or sad about listening to your feelings.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\">After leaving soccer, I\u2019ve been able to try new things that I would have never thought of trying. Since freshman year, I\u2019ve joined five new extracurriculars, all of which have value to me. I\u2019ve never been happier in my entire life. I\u2019m not saying that soccer was the worst thing that happened to me, because it wasn\u2019t. Without soccer, who knows where I would be today? However, I\u2019ve also realized there\u2019s more to life than soccer, it\u2019s just a game. Life is extremely short, and I\u2019ll spend it on things that truly matter to me.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4,68],"tags":[175,173],"class_list":["post-4501","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-nw","category-sportscolumnist","tag-2019-20","tag-division-1-2","entry","has-post-thumbnail"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"author_info":{"display_name":"Joel Beeker","author_link":"https:\/\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/?author=9"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6K0n6-1aB","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4501","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4501"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4501\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4501"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4501"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acutabove.mipamsu.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4501"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}