be positive

The freshly painted tennis court seared my tired, burning eyes. I looked around and saw other young girls my age warming up their serves. This was the first day of the two day tournament that my country club hosts for young tennis players.  The good weather could not stop the sick feeling from creeping into my stomach. I did not want to play today. A wave of anxiety washed over me as I watched some of the girls hitting spectacular shots. I had no idea why I was even here, I was not good enough to compete with these girls. The negative thoughts kept coming at me like an avalanche. All of the girls were wearing bleached white tennis shoes with the nike swoosh emblazoned on the sides. They were decked out in expensive designer clothes etched with elaborate designs. Their shiny racquets glistened in the early morning sun. I felt my heart sink as I looked down at my scraped racquet and muddy shoes.
I was called to the net to start my first match. I clenched my racquet with my clammy hands and tried to keep calm as I observed my opponent. She was at least four inches taller and wider than me and made of all muscle. I felt my mouth go dry as I observed her looming appearance. I did not stand a chance.
She won the spin which meant she had to serve the first point of the match. As she coiled back to strike the ball, I felt myself freeze. The impact of the shot nearly took my arm off. The rest of the match followed the same line. I played awfully and I did not have a single good shot all day. She ended up beating me eight games to zero.
I felt disappointment fill me as I walked off the court. A prickly flame burned my cheeks and I felt a shallow feeling in my chest.
When I finally got home all I wanted to do was forget about the dreadful match and withdraw from tomorrow but my parents would not let me.
My dad said, "It does not matter how you played, it just matters that you tried your best. Also remember that a positive attitude is the most important thing you can have."
Normally I would roll my eyes at my dad's generic advice. This time I actually took it into consideration.
The next day was even prettier than the day before. The vibrant colored courts welcomed me. A warm breeze touseled my hair and made me smile. I kept thinking about my dad's advice as I warmed up. I was at ease and my shot was nice and compact.
I was called to the net for my match again. I was playing the exact same girl as yesterday, only today something was different. Her vast frame was not as intimdating. I was also blind to her elaborate clothes and racquet. Her starting shot was no longer hard and fast like a bullet. I quickly found my rhythm and I ended up beating the girl five games to three.
This experience taught me how powerful a mindset can be. Everytime I start feeling negative energy creep into my thoughts I think back to how different the outcomes of the two matches were because of my attitude. I believe that almost always, a positive mindset makes good things happen.

keep looking up

The smell of the freshly cut grass was intoxicating. The humid summer air enveloped me and gave me an exciting feeling of anticipation. As I was warming up at the practice range, I could not help but feel the surging of adrenaline through my body. I was so excited, today was the day of my first tournament of the season. I had been practicing and preparing harder than I had in my entire career. Everything was going to be perfect and I could feel that I was about to have a record breaking round. I had been waiting for this moment for a long time and now was my chance to prove myself.
I was in a pairing with two other girls. One of them had dark brown hair  and was short and pudgy. The other was wearing head to toe designer wear. She had light blonde hair and she was about the same height as me but she had a nasty look plastered on her face. The atmosphere was very intense. No one was saying anything and everyone was trying to get in tournament mode.
I was handed a white scorecard with my name written across the top in red sharpie. I started to get very nervous. I could feel moisture forming in the palms of my hands and my mouth started to dry. I felt like someone had released hundreds of butterflies into my stomach.
An old, bald man called my name to approach the first tee. I felt his beady, black eyes scutinizing me as I took my first practice swing for the tee shot. Suddenly, I felt my entire body freeze. It was like someone had taken all of the bones out of my body. As I took the club back to hit the ball, it was as if I was someone else watching myself hit the ball. I had rehearsed this very shot hundreds of times and now it felt foreign and awkward.
I finally made contact with the small, white ball. It made a funny noise on the stainless steel club face. The ball was propelled into an area with many thick oak trees. There were roots springing up from the ground and wrapping themselves around the bases of the trees. The ball hit one of the roots with a thud and disappeared, taking all of my excitement and anticipation with it. Everything inside of me sank. It was the beginning of a terrible day.
After that awful shot, all of my hopes and expectations for the day came crashing down and hit me like sharp rocks. I felt so stupid for wasting so much time on practicing and expecting so much. I had one of the worst rounds of my career. I felt my heart drop when I saw the old man with the beady, black eyes writing my dreadful score in red ink next to my name for everyone to see. No matter how hard I squinted, the crimson colored ink seemed to burn my eyes. I had practiced for hundreds of hours and none of it had paid off. Later that night, my mom came up to my room and interrupted my moping.
"Trust me, tomorrow will be a better day. Just stay positive and it will turn around."
The next day I went out to the course with hardly any expectations or goals. After warming up at the practice range I walked over to the teebox where the disaster had taken place the day before. I sat there calmly and tried to relax. I was paired with the same girls from the previous round. The old man called my name to hit my teeshot. As I walked up to the first tee I felt cool and collected. The old man that had seemed so menacing before, was now as intimidating as my pink, fluffy headcover on my driver. I stood over the ball and took a deep breath. My swing was as comfortable as it was when I played with my brother. The club met the pearly, white ball with a satisfying ping noise. The ball was launched straight into the warm, summer air with a high arc. It landed softly in the center of the green fairway in perfect position of the green. I felt a smile spread across my face.
I ended up having the best round of my life that day. Everytime I get down on myself, the memory of that ill-fated round and the phenomenal round that followed pops into my head. It reminds me of how no matter how hard things can get, in some situations you have to keep going because a good "shot" will come your way if you relax.

small annoyances

I got out of my mom's car and looked at the monstrous building that loomed before me. On this sunny, summer morning I was volunteering at Shands Hospital. I had woken up extremely early to get here on time. Despite the sweltering hot weather, I had been forced to wear the standard green volunteer shirt and a pair of long, khaki pants. I could not help but feel annoyed as I thought about what I could be doing instead. The smell of rubbing alcohol mixed with coffee greeted my nose the moment I walked through the front entrance of the atrium. Suddenly, a wave of anxiety hit me as I observed the bustling environment. There were hundreds of hallways and doors. There were tons of doctors, all wearing differently colored scrubs, walking at a brisk pace to get to their assigned wings. There were people that I assumed to be family members ambling about the lobby looking stressed. I felt awkward and overwhelmed standing in the middle of this confusion and not knowing where to go. I wandered down the winding hallways by following the signs directing me to the volunteer office. After getting lost multiple times in the maze, I finally made it to the office. Nervously, I opened the door and walked in to the small room. The first person I saw was a pudgy, middle-aged woman with curly hair. She quickly greeted me, introduced me to a couple other teenagers and then gave us our assignments for the day. She led us to an elevator where we got on. The woman punched each floor button without saying a word. At each stop she would make one of us get off. She told me to get out on the fourth floor which happened to be the pediatrics wing. She gave me simple instructions, to go give assistance to the nurses. I felt another wave of dread flood through me. Why was I here so early in the morning in these uncomfortable clothes with no idea of what I was doing? I felt so out of place and uneasy. I ended up making my way over to a nurses' station to ask if they needed any help. This was the only part of the hospital that had any color on the walls besides beige. The walls were covered with children's drawings and pictures.They pointed me in the direction of a room and told me it was a girl who had suffered serious burns. She was about eight years old and I had never felt so sorry for anyone in my entire life. Her entire torso and both of her legs were completely bandaged and wrapped up. She had to stay in the same position all day long due to her delicate condition. The girl also didn't have any family members or friends with her and she had been at the hospital for a long time. When I entered the room it was dimly lit and the blinds were drawn. She looked up at me and grimaced. I sat in the chair next to the bed and introduced myself to her. We ended up talking for hours. It was so heart wrenching to see such a nice, young girl wasting away in this hospital bed. Talking with this girl made me appreciate everything that I have. She would have given anything to be able to leave the hospital and enjoy life, even if it meant wearing pants and having to find her way around a new place. The things I had been complaining about in my head earlier that day were so trivial.    I had always appreciated the things I had, but something about this experience just opened my eyes to a whole new level of appreciation. Now whenever I am unhappy or upset about something, the image of the girl flashes into my head and I am reminded of how truly fortunate I am to be able to live my daily life, even with the minor annoyances.