The "Future" Issue - 99 Volume 2, Issue 4

In a practice with that Sparta team this past summer, I
tried to turn too quickly and felt the same terrible pain I
felt the first time I got injured. I knew that my season was
over and I wasn’t sure I’d be able to play ever again. I had a
more intensive surgery, which included an osteotomy and
a lateral release, but with it came a much longer recovery.
I was given 9 months until I’d be able to play soccer again.
I couldn’t believe that I’d miss my junior season of soccer,
but I was ecstatic that I could still play.
I felt something inside me say that this time, things would
be different. I wasn’t going to let my grades slip. I wouldn’t
be lazy this time. Most importantly, I changed my outlook
on life. I saw this as a chance to return to the game I loved,
not as some sort of punishment. I spent countless hours
training and working so that I would be able to play soccer.
I turned a 9 month recovery into 5 because I missed the
beautiful game so much.
That year at Blue Knights was truly special for me.
I made some of the best friends of my life, won a
couple good tournaments, and proved that my hard
work was worth it in the end. We even beat Sparta’s
top team, which was my favorite moment. I played my
freshman season of high school soccer before returning
to club, which was tons of fun. Then, I played
a second year with them. We had a really good team
and had the potential to win more games than the
season before. I earned a starting spot on a team that
had high goals set for State Cup.
Life seemed to be going super well in addition to soccer.
My 16th birthday had just passed and I was happier
than ever. In the last game of the season, I was
defending arguably the best player in my age group.
I had locked him down that whole game and then I
took the ball up on a counterattack towards the end
of the first half. I planted my foot and faked one way
and heard a loud pop and instantly felt a burning
sensation. I looked down and my kneecap was on the
side of my thigh. I screamed and cried for what felt
like hours that night when I came to the realization
that my hard-earned season was over. I had torn my
medial patellofemoral ligament and fractured and
dislocated my kneecap.
However, I was more sad at the fact that I was about
to lose the sport I loved so dearly. I was the “soccer
kid” and I felt like that was all I could identify as. I hit
my lowest lows, my grades fell, and I felt an empty
nothingness not comparable to anything else, but I
held hope deep down that I would return. My habits
got worse. I became lazy and stopped working,
including in my recovery process. After what seemed
like forever, I returned to sport, even gaining varsity
minutes and eventually making Sparta’s top team
in my age group, which had been my goal all along.
None of this went as planned though. The injury had
its obvious physical drawbacks, but the mental ones
far outweighed them.
I became a much happier person that could finally identify
with things that didn’t include soccer. Now, I am still
most proud of my renewed work ethic and my new outlook
on life. I am now just happy to do simple things because I
know what it is like to go without them. Every time I get
the chance, I am outside participating in some form of activity,
ranging from soccer even to just walking. I now have
motivation to excel in whatever I do because instead of
quitting, I used my opportunities to better myself. If I had
to give some advice to someone dealing with a similar situation,
I would first say this: you don’t know what you have
until you lose it. I didn’t appreciate the game while I had it
but now I love it over everything. I think the most important
message, though, is to never give up. If I had quit the
second time around, I would never be the person that I
have become. I am happier and willing to work harder than
ever before. After my first surgery, I wished I had never
been injured, but looking back now after two surgeries, I’m
glad it happened. Maybe I won’t go pro, but I will always
love the game. I truly credit my current success to my injuries
and if I could go back, I wouldn’t change a thing.
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