Undergraduate / Sports Medicine Career: The beginning to an End - USC Essay [5]

Instructions: Please write an essay, approximately 500-700 words (typically one page) in length on one of the following topics. Check the box for your topic.

Prompt: USC's speaker series What Matters to Me and Why asks faculty and staff to reflect on their values, beliefs, and motivations. Presenters talk about choices they have made, difficulties encountered and commitments solidified. Write an essay about an event or experience that helped you learn what is important to you and why it is important.

Birthdays are filled with celebrations and people gathering together to commemorate a friend, a family member, or an acquaintance's special day. On my birthday, April 3rd, 2007, my special day was unlike any other birthday a teenage girl had experienced. Instead of celebration, I got sympathy; Instead of joy, I got tears.

The morning of my birthday, I woke up extra early to pack my gym bag and head to the gym for our basketball team's annual tournament. The foggy San Francisco weather was gloomy and the mist was so overwhelming that our family car's headlights could barely break through it. However, I was in such high spirits that not even the terrible San Francisco weather could shatter it. As we rolled up to the parking lot of Lowell High School, the fog was starting to clear up, and I can almost sense the sun breaking through the clouds and pushing away the gloominess. I was ready for a wonderful birthday and a great game.

The game started off as any other basketball game, we were playing the competitive San Jose Ninjas and both teams were getting very frustrated with each other. It was the 3rd quarter of the game, and I had finally made a successful steal from the Ninjas and was sprinting down the court on a fast break. Little did I know, two other Ninja girls, twice the size of me, had sandwiched me, and both were attempting to whack the ball out of my hands. However, I was persistent and was determined to outrun them and possibly make a remarkable shot. My stubbornness and lack of judgment lead me into a series of events that truly changed my life. As one of the Ninja girls next to me was running, she tripped over herself and made a face plant on the floor. I quickly accessed the situation and saw it to be a great opportunity to speedily blow past the fallen Ninja player. However, I had completely forgotten about the other Ninja player whom was still attempting to steal the ball from me. During our high speed run, she slightly nudged me, and I fell over the already fallen Ninja girl's body and tearing my ACL and Meniscus. The series of events that preceded this injury is now such a blur, I can still feel the pain and frustration now as I did 4 years ago as I was lying on the court drenched in sweat and tears.

Following my ACL reconstruction surgery, I was to attend 9 months of rehabilitation and was mandated to restrain from any physical activities, including basketball, during this period of time. The physical and emotional struggle to keep up with my friends as they continued to play games, sports, and other enjoyable activities kept me motivated to rehabilitate harder. The gruesome physical therapy was difficult and tedious. I had to re-strengthen my entire right leg and re-learn how to walk. Many once simple tasks such as taking a shower or getting out of bed had become now very difficult. I was always reliant on my parents or sister to help me, I felt like a 90 year old woman. The 9 months had been a constant emotional struggle, I had so much resentment for the Ninja team, so much anger at my coach for pressuring me to keep running, but most of all I was angry at myself for making such rash decisions. I truly began to lose myself in anger and pushed myself further away from my friends and family.

Quickly after my 9 months were over, I was right back on the court and working extra hard to prove myself. I expected to pick up where I left off, and still be one of the star players on the team. However, 9 months off of basketball truly hurt my basketball skills and I constantly found myself struggling to relearn old techniques that I once regarded as second nature. I kept getting frustrated at myself for not being able to catch passes, or not making my free throws. However I was determined to continue with basketball and regain my respect back on the court.

Two years after my injury, I was still struggling to catch up to the rest of my teammates. I still worked harder than everybody else. In my efforts to prove myself during practice, I injured my other knee and tore my other ACL. However, I refused to show any signs of weakness and continued to play through the injury. From practice to practice, my knee kept getting worse and worse, until one day I simply couldn't jump up for a shot anymore. I was forced to have another surgery. I had injured my knee beyond return, and though I had surgery, my doctor strongly discouraged me from playing competitive basketball. I saw my world crashing down after my doctor's news, I was forced to give up the only life I truly loved, and put a halt on athletics.

Looking back on my basketball experience, I can surely say that my struggle has shaped me into the mature young woman I am today. Through ending my journey in the world of basketball, I have been given the opportunity to pursue other passions I have. I entered into the Miss Teen Chinatown Pageant, joined many school clubs, volunteered within my church, and studied abroad in England. My experience in competitive basketball has given me a sturdy framework in other aspects of my life, and has inspired me to pursue a career in Sports Medicine where I can help other athletes pursue their dreams.

This is my first draft, and I know there are many errors. I was hoping to get some feedback to begin with before I edit it. Also, this surpasses the word count, so I will be needing to cut some parts out. If you have any suggestions where i should elaborate less would be great. Any feedback would be great! Thanks