Love Note to Soccer: So Long For Now

I've decided to transfer to a new college. The reasons boil down to wanting a bigger school, with a more varied curriculum, better pre-professional resources, and a more dynamic environment. I really want to combine economics with premed studies.My current college is great academically and the people are wonderful and interesting. It just doesn't fit my goals or my personality. A by-product of this is that I say goodbye, at least for now, to competitive soccer. This is bittersweet for me. The sport has been a constant companion for 15 years. At the same time, it has been a jealous mistress that demands full attention. Because of the pandemic, I was forced to live without high-end competitive soccer for months. And, it wasn't too bad. In fact, it was great in many regards. I missed it for sure, but was able to dig deeper into my music, read books outside of class, and really focus on what I wanted -- it compelled me to think about life in longer and more real terms, beyond soccer.

The absence of soccer allowed me to focus on what I want in all other areas of my life, now and forever. I couldn't be happier or more excited to be moving on; yet, I think I will always get emotional thinking about the sport and my time playing it. For now, I think I will focus my memories on one play; my favorite and most meaningful play during high school. It's my favorite not because I scored (although I like that) or that I did it with my left foot (cool, though). It's because of the reaction of my teammates. It's because it helped seal a victory against our arch rivals. It's because it helped the seniors on my team beat a team they had not previously beaten during their time at my high school. I am a big believer in school spirit, and I felt it in me on this goal. Goodbye competitive soccer, you will be missed...