I.

I am an athlete. Flick of the wrist, that’s my specialty. Be it a disc, a racket, a basketball, a baseball, I can do it all. Other than tennis, I have that special ability to connect with my receiver, understand his capabilities, and make the ball or disc float to the spot. People say wow when they see how much momentum I can generate with a simple flick. Some say it’s not impressive. It is, considering I haven’t worked on my ability like some people have. I picked up a frisbee, got inspired and threw it quite a bit. In less than a week, I was throwing 30, 40, 50 yards. I just knew how to spin it just right so it would land in the hands of the receiver and time the descent. I got a lot of praise and I was pleased.
The real intent behind me posting this is to give you the message. I gave up frisbee because it wasn’t big and I was good at it already. But I was discouraged to find that I was average in a high school team I joined. Talent doesn’t win games. Hard work does. And hard work comes with passion. Without passion, you get nowhere. I got a lot of praise and I was pleased, but I stopped there. What’s the point in that? It’s like a finding something you’re good at and giving it up because you’re lazy. Don’t give it up. Don’t undermine the talent you have. I assure you, any talent you have is a potential seed for something you can’t imagine.
When I started playing tennis, nobody expected me to be good. I was a scrawny kid with tiny shoulders and a big head to boot. I was bouncy and hyper, not a good combination for a good tennis player. I now play varsity in one of the top tennis teams in the state. We improved from one of the worst to a contender for the state title. But, my progress got limited by a rigorous educational course I enrolled in. Even then, I made excuses to not play tennis. I have homework, I have a project, my study group’s expecting so much, I got church, I’m tired. I regret it, but now I know. Don’t let people think hard work is for losers - they’re weighing you down. You’re not living your life. That’s what people who don’t have talent say. They say balance. I say passion.
The people I admire are people who follow their passion. They know what they’re searching for and they know the sacrifices they make. Others around them might dismiss him as insane, anti-social, weird, imbalanced, but the truth is - no one has their life completely figured out. Shit happens.