Girl trying to make it in the sport's world

I was a competitive gymnast for 12 years of my life. I began when I was 2 and quit once I started high school.
I played softball for a good number of years in a league outside of school. I may not have been the best but I was part of the team.
I did the church basketball scene from 7 until my last year in high school. I popped my shoulder out at a practice and outside sports were soon banned by my school sport.
I enjoyed tennis throughout a summer or two, along with golf lessons. I went to the driving range a lot with my dad and still enjoy to go once in a while.
I snowboard (not the best) and push myself to try it even though it usually ends in injuries.
Lastly I am a cheerleader. After quitting gymnastics my mother wanted me to stay active so I cheered 3 years in high school and then 2 in college.

This last part of my sporting career puts me in a group. Girls (and boys!) that many other athletes and society do not take seriously. When "cheerleader" is heard stereotypical ideas come into many people minds. Mindless girls that care too much about a sport that many deem a club activity. Girls that are catty and weak. It is because of this when I wear my PSU CHEER shirt and announce I want to enter sports journalism I get blank stares.

Sports journalism is a field that is competitive for women to begin with. It is common to see females more but there are still issues behind the scenes. I was sent a meme the other day of a female reporter interviewing the US Men's Swimming team with a caption implying that the men are the reason why she is doing her job. Issues like these are found both in society and in the field and an issue I am ready to deal with. On top of that I have the cheerleader stereotype following me around in this job. I have had people already question my motives in wanting to do this job.

My motives for doing sports journalism are simple. I love sports. I love football and hockey (Giants and Penguins all the way). I would love to be able to write about what I love. I will not be writing about about how attractive the players are or who has the best hair that day. The reason I want to write is because of the team aspect. A group of people relying on each other to reach a common goal.
I've been in that situation in most of the sports I have done. In gymnastics my score would help my team win the overall. In softball I had to pay attention or else the ball may fly on by me. In basketball my shooting and passing would help us pull ahead. Lastly in cheerleading I was needed. If I was not there 3 other people in my stunt group would be out. A pyramid may not be able to go up. So while we may not have been a "sport" there was not doubt we were a team. It is that bond that is intriguing and makes me want to explore it more. The statistics and individual players are facts that need to be known because they are part of the team. It is all of this that will drive me to succeed in a world where I may be told I do not belong.

The Beginning- First thoughts on school

So the end has begun- my senior year of college.
Unlike my friends attending classes at this moment I am sitting watching The Office for the umpteenth time, deciding to finally start my blog and looking at my disorganized room. My senior year does not start for 16 more days when I will say goodbye to my family and step on a plane to head to Dublin for 3 months. I've decided to spend my first semester of my senior year studying abroad instead of going to the bars up in Plattsburgh with my friends.

Studying abroad was a big decision that came with a lot of hesitation and anxiety. Despite all of this I made the choice to go for several different reasons:

• I did not want to graduate in December, might as well stretch it out as long as I can
• I mean who wouldn't want to go to a place overseas for an extended amount of time and just live life
• It is what my dad would have loved to see me do. Before he passed away he made sure to tell me to take advantage of any opportunity I can, he wanted so much more for us
• I need this. I need the chance to see what it would be like to be completely independent and live on my own before I have to in the real world

My family supported me throughout high school and when I went away to college in Upstate New York they were still there for me. If I needed to escape for the weekend my aunt was close and my hometown only a few hours further. If I wasted my money on silly decorations or clothing I always had the option to call Mom up and ask nicely for her help. That is no longer, I am going overseas and taking out loans putting myself in charge of my life. I need to grow up and start living like I am going to in a few months. 

So this is it. I will leave behind my mother, sister, brother, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends and boyfriend. I will have to celebrate not only my 21st birthday in a country whose drinking age is 18, but also the first Thanksgiving without my father. I will have milestones in a foreign place with the hope I'll have friends by that point... I could not be more excited. I get the chance to do what not many people do. I get the chance to just live my life. I (hopefully) get the chance to enter the sports journalism program in Dublin and start my dreams. I get the chance to meet new people and just be me all over again. I get the chance to live in a different country without my safety net. 

This is all something I cannot wait to do and these 16 days need to go by faster.