People have always asked me, why do you cheer? Why do I put myself through the frustration of a mental block? Why do I deprive myself from sleep from practicing so late? Why do I give up my social life for practice and competitions, and why do I trust 1 to 4 people to throw and hold me in the air knowing flying is a possibility? The answer is simple really, it’s what I do. It’s not my life, it’s my passion.

   I honestly couldn’t tell you what I’d do if I didn’t cheer. I couldn’t imagine my life without soreness in the mornings, or frustration because of tumbling or not hitting a stunt or not being able to go out with friends or school dances and losing sleep because we practice so late. All that has become like second nature to me. That soreness I get in the morning just shows me how hard I worked, the frustration means I’m that much closer to getting a new skill and not getting to hang out with friends from school I’m okay with, you form this sort of bond with your team where they become more than a team, you become sisters, so I’d rather be with my sisters doing what I love to do.

  You may think I’m crazy for missing school dances because “high school only happens once” well I may not have this opportunity to do what I love to do in the future due to other responsibilities such as college, careers, and family. Sure I could give up competitive cheer and just do high school cheer. No night practices, or weekend practices, or all weekend competitions. I’d get to hang out with my friends from school a lot more, possibly even have more friends, maybe go to Formal or Prom, or have a boyfriend. I’d definitely have more of a social life. But I have time for all that in the future, I may not have a ton of friends but I have great ones, and most relationships wont last through high school let alone college, but cheer is what’s happening now, I know ill have friends later in life, I know ill meet the right guy eventually, but what I don’t know is when my last competition will be.

   I don’t know when will be the last time will be that I get that rush of energy when the music starts, or the wave of nerves waiting to be called on stage or the happiness it brings me knowing all eyes are on my team, or the drive I have to push myself that much harder to succeed that much more. High school cheer just wouldn’t satisfy my passion like all star cheer does. It wouldn’t teacher me the skills I would need for scouts to look at me or learn how to bond with a team so closely as I have, and I really couldn’t see myself getting a scholarship from it. It just wouldn’t portray the kind of athlete and person I really am.

  Honestly, every day I dread going to cheer, but when I’m walking off that blue mat, I don’t want to leave. When I’m sitting at home and everything feels so wrong cheer feels so right. Cheer isn’t just a sport, it’s like a fancy machine that takes away all the hard stuff in life. I don’t cheer because I’m good at it, I’m obviously not the best. Cheer wasn’t always like this, it was my hobby then it became my obsession. After that I fell in love with it not the sport, but the joy it brought me. It’s not my life, but my second life. The life I go to when nothing’s going my way. It’s how I can escape and I love every minute of it.