Not knowing what to do I was in my room again, laying down in my bed, on my phone watching TikToks. Days passed. It was the same thing every day, like an endless rotation that never changed and just kept going on forever.

In the pandemic, the only time I would leave my room was to go eat. Every once in a while, I would play video games with friends. That was fun. It was like the old times before Covid but just online. Since my parents separated, we would switch houses every other weekend. My sister and I shared a room at both houses spending most of our time on our phones. The days dragged, everything felt like slow motion and I was feeling lost and miserable. This continued for a few months until my school announced that in-person classes were back.

My mom immediately signed me up saying I needed to get out of the house. I begged her to stay home. Deep down I was kind of happy to hang out with my friends but I was nervous. I had not socialized with people since COVID-19 started. It was nerve wracking. I was filled with anxiety and worry. Sixth grade was a decent year. Summer passed and 7th grade came. The first few months were a blur. Basketball tryouts were announced and my friends and older sister encouraged me to participate. I was a bit hesitant at first, joining a sport is a big commitment but I made up my mind and did it. When tryouts ended, I was pleasantly surprised to see my name on the list.

Our first game came. I was so nervous the whole day my stomach started hurting. It was hectic at first. We went back and forth. The game ended in a tie and we went into overtime. We lost by two points! I was devastated, disappointed in myself. Coach said we played well and it didn't matter that we lost. He tried to cheer us up but that couldn't stop me from being disappointed in myself. When we got our first win I felt this new sensation, it felt awesome. I enjoyed it every time we won. Eventually, the season ended. Basketball was the first sport I ever played and it was definitely a new experience of emotions. I would miss all my new friends and the fun practices we had.

8th grade came and soccer season did too. I decided to give it a shot. Surprisingly, I wasn't as scared as I was when I tried out for basketball. That experience helped me become confident. After tryouts finished, I was told I made the team and I was so excited. Our first game came, we lost. It was another blissful and heated experience. Soccer season ended fast and next up was basketball so I tried out again. Basketball was awesome. I enjoyed every last bit of it even if we lost most of our games.

After basketball ended, I realized that I loved trying out for sports. I was out of my shell and was a different person from 6th grade me and I loved that. Sports showed me so many new things and I cherished everything, all the sweat and tears. Sports made me realize that whether it was a loss or a win, you have to cherish it. We lost a lot but that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. We had each other and that was enough. Losing made us learn from our mistakes and just made us even more determined to win. Playing sports changed my life and made me realize life is too short to not take a step forward. I learned that basketball is more than a game.

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