The field: Home

The field: Home

Growing up all my life revolved around was soccer, and still to this day it does. Soccer is a work of art and it’s more than just kicking a ball into a goal. Preparing a wonderful soccer field takes time and dedication, the lines must be perfect and the grass has to be cut to a specific length, otherwise the game will not flow correctly. In my eyes I look at the soccer field as a symbolization of home. The field and I share memories that I could never relive even if I tried. There is a bond between myself and the soccer field, much like there is between people and home.

No drug in the world could re-create the feeling of scoring the game winning goal in an important match. As soon as you realize the ball is going to hit the back of the net you lose feeling. You begin to run frantically, but you can’t run fast enough because your teammates will always catch you to pat you on the back. If anyone on my team were to do something good such as block a shot, score the game winner, or make a hard tackle, the team would be there to tell him what a fantastic job he was doing. It’s a family thing. Any team can handle praise, but it takes a true family-team to be able to take constructive criticism. As much as we praise each other we also criticize one another. The field is like a home because we solve all problems through conversing on a field as a family solves problems in a home.

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For me the soccer field is my chapel. I’ve learned more than I have in some classes on the field. It teaches valuable lessons both on and off the field which can be very rewarding. There’s always room to improve on the field, and you can never be perfect. You’re not always going to win in the beautiful sport of soccer, but you can’t win everything in life. “I look at the field as one of my homes because it’s like my actual home, consistent, but hardly ever perfect,” said David Beckham

One of my favorite feelings for me is walking onto the field on a beautiful day. The sun is up, the wind is calm, and all you can think about is the ball at your feet. All of my problems go away. It’s like when an artist is painting, or when a writer is writing. It’s better than any drug or feeling in the world.  Like most things, soccer can be frustrating no matter what, but at the end of the day I play the sport because I think it makes me a better person overall.

Life is like one big test. A test that you’re preparing for all of your life. Everyone around you is going through the motions so that one day when they’re older they can have experiences and opportunities that others didn’t. Well, the game of soccer is a test that I’ve been practicing for since I was in 3^rd grade. Its weird to think that I’m a freshman in college now, but that going to show how much I’ve learned. “Only 9% of people go on to play college sports, and I look at the 9% and think to myself,” said ESPN bloggers. “Wow, I really must have done something right to be in this position I am in.”

Almost all of my idols are or were professional soccer players, and I can guarantee they feel the same way I do about the pitch. Whether it is a dirt pitch or a pitch that looks like what professionals play on, a soccer field will always be home for me. I know that even if I have a rough day that I can go out and kick the ball around and that will take my mind off of things. In my opinion, putting a ball at your feet is the best way to think about things, or even reflect on the day or task at hand. Fathers are idols to some, but for me these professionals, specifically Lionel Messi, is my idol and always will be.

I grew up playing, loving, and being a student of the game of soccer. For the rest of my life soccer will somehow be involved. Whether its through coaching youth, watching it on television, or maybe someday advancing on to playing professional. After playing a full season of PDL, which is professional development league, and also playing in college I think I’m ready to take a step up and continue to play on the biggest stage of them all. Professional. If I’ve already grown up believing so much in this beautiful sport, then why stop now?