Spring soccer with my Rush club team was a blast! After our initial poor performance at the Des Moines tournament, we finished our regular season in undefeated fashion, even with one man down or no subs.

Still, even though winning is fun, the best part for me was participating in the victory lap at the conclusion of each game, because there’s just something about receiving high fives from your smiling, gushing parents fan club (especially since last season’s protocol was to wave from a COVID-safe distance). In fact, this lap of love even topped the feeling of scoring a goal in the final game of the season, after spending most of my playing time in a defender position. You might not have assumed this after bearing witness to my over-the-top celebratory run-dance, but truly, the highlight was not the super impressive, career-building goal that I scored; What I loved most about this season was the receiving line of proud supporters.

Thank you, loved ones, for faithfully cheering us on and for always being there to tie the occasional loose shoe string in the middle of the games. We hear you on the sidelines even if we’re too cool to acknowledge as such.