Ever since I was a little girl, sports have always been a part of my life whether I was playing them or watching them.
My parents involved me in various sports: track and field, softball, gymnastics, basketball and the one that stuck with me the most, soccer.
Soccer was the first thing I ever truly excelled at. I spent most of my afternoons on the field, kicking a ball back and forth with my teammates. During the weekends, I was covered in sweat from head to toe, playing in never-ending games and tournaments, traveling all over northern California to do so.
I never thought my passion and love for soccer would ever go away. I had dreams of playing in college and from there, playing the sport professionally. I remember in sixth grade telling my grandma that she would see me in the 2020 Olympics performing on the USA women’s soccer team.
However, I was wrong. My passion for soccer slowly faded as I got older. The team and the sport no longer felt like a second home, but instead felt like a chore I had to complete everyday.
Sports had always consumed my life and without soccer, I needed another sport to fill this gap I had in my heart.
I quickly jumped into running track for my high school and once again, found myself consumed in the sport. The same love and passion I felt for soccer came back to me when I was running, and I finally felt like myself again — like I had a purpose for this world.
In my junior year of high school, I suffered a hip injury that took me out of the rest of the season.
When senior year rolled around, my times were not where I wanted them to be or where they should have been, and the dream I had of competing in college slipped away from my fingertips.
This passion for playing sports died within me, and I began looking for other things I excelled at and could focus on. With that, I found writing.
Writing became an escape for me, a way I could express myself and my feelings. I started writing for fun, reading articles online, and finding ways I could better my work and become the best writer to my ability.
When it became time to pick a major, my mother suggested journalism since she knew how much I loved to write. It was at that moment it all hit me: I wanted to be a sports journalist.
My love for sports didn’t have to die because I no longer played them. I could still have a career in sports, this time off the field, writing about sports games and interviewing players on the team.
I couldn’t imagine my life now without writing. It is what makes me. Being a professional sports journalist one day is something I never could have imagined myself doing, however, I can’t imagine myself doing anything else now.
Sometimes losing a passion for something you’ve loved for so long isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It can help you branch out and discover other things you are interested in and are good at.
Never be afraid to quit something that no longer brings you joy. Find the things that do and chase them because life is too short not to.
Taylor Harris is a junior studying journalism. Follow her on Twitter @taylorharrisjms.
