Cheerleading Taught Me a Lesson

The only difficulty that I can think of that I've faced in my life happened my freshmen year.  I always refer to cheerleading with everything I do in my life because it has made a huge impact on my life plus all the people I have met, challenges I've faced and overcome and just the sport in general have given me a different outlook on plenty of things. I've been doing cheerleading for 12 years (since 2nd grade) and i don't regret any of it. Freshmen year in high school I tried out for the team along with all my other friend's whom I have been cheering with since 2nd grade. Cheering in high school was a whole new ball game compared to pop warner and middle school. So tryouts went on and the final day came when we tried out in front of the judges, come to find out I did not make the team, but all 5 of my friends did. That crushed my self esteem more than anything. I was speechless and had no idea how to react cause I was so hurt. This was most difficult for me because I felt as if I wasn't good enough, my hard work wasn't paying off, and I was taking a year off doing something that I loved. Even after all that negative, plenty of positive came out of what happened. I had so many peoples standing behind me willing to help me out for the upcoming season. The head coach, who has been a family friend for years practiced with me at least once a week for a while, and all I got was positive feedback because SHE BELIEVED in me. She knew I could do it which made me more confident in myself. So when May 2009 came I tried out, and made the team, and couldn't be happier. Starting college and being done with cheerleading I have a state champs and regional champs title to remember, 12 years of memories, plenty of lessons learned, and a team I consider sisters. This can go with college because you have to realize that not everything you work hard for in the beginning will always work out. You might have to go that extra mile to get what you want, because sometimes not everything in life is easy to get when you want it. You have to learn to stay positive and remember when you need help, just ask for it because chances are theres always going to be someone who has your back. This also made me learn that not everything is going to be handed to you in life, you have to work towards your goals, which is a main reason why people go to college.