Good Life Award - Winners
2008
Good Life Award Writing Contest
Honorable Mention
Jake Doran
8th Grade, Magsig Middle School
| It may be hard to believe, but I could be achieving one of my goals in the time it takes for someone to read this sentence. That’s because I’m a swimmer. In this sport, even a fraction of a second can make the difference between reaching a goal I set for myself and competing in a championship meet, or just sitting on the sidelines. While it sounds easy to those who are not in this sport to “just swim a couple of seconds faster”, it often takes hundreds of hours of training both in the pool and exercise on dry land to be able to drop even half a second from a 100-yard event. This past winter, I had to drop 2.5 seconds from my 200-yard breast stroke to qualify for the state Junior Olympic Championship meet. I made this goal for myself and did many things to reach it. I went to all of my practices with a good attitude and worked really hard to improve. I also had added in a few extra practices with the coach of another swim team who is a family friend. During meets, I would listen to music to pump myself up for the race I was about to swim and I would look over at other faster swimmers to try to keep pace with them. But the most important thing that helped me reach my goal was to really believe that I could do it and nothing was going to stop me from doing it. I swam in a special qualifying meet and not only reached my goal but went past it by 4 seconds. I will never forget that night- it was one of the greatest feelings I’ve ever known. I’m looking forward to being on the Centerville High School swim team next year and I have set a new goal for myself: drop 2.9 seconds from my current time on the 100-yard breaststroke event so that I can swim in a varsity meet as a freshman. It will be different swimming in high school because I will go to more practices, but I know keeping a positive attitude during all of that hard work pays off. I will have a new coach to listen to, but I also plan to look up to the older kids on my team to see how they swim and improve. I plan to get stronger because I will have started weight training and because of the increased number of practices. I found that the best way to meet a goal was to work hard, follow a plan and, most importantly, believe in myself. Every time I think I’m going to give up or every time I want to skip practice, I think about how I felt that night when I met my goal. And that makes me work hard to achieve the next one. |