“I started playing basketball when I was in second grade. I was in dance, basketball and choir and also chess. Basketball was the only thing out of those that stuck. My family [is] really athletic, and a lot of us play sports. My mom played basketball. She loved basketball, and I feel like it was really a way for me and my mom to connect when I was younger. I like that it’s a contact sport, but it’s not like football. It’s not crazy contact. But I like that I can kind of be aggressive and use my energy in different ways. I can be positive towards my teammates, but I could also be a little bit more physical on the court. I [also] really like volleyball, because I can hit the ball hard, but it’s just not the same. It’s like giving somebody a little shove.
“Honestly [when it comes to balancing school and basketball], it’s just kind of like knowing my schedule and knowing the things that I have to do. Honestly, I’m behind all the time, but all that matters [is] that I get it done. I like that [basketball] kind of gives me something to do, something really fun. I get to play with my friends. It’s something competitive, [and] I’m [a] really competitive person. It’s like a goal that I can work towards. [What drew me to basketball], specifically, [was] my summer [camp] teammates, [as] they’re the most fun and positive people in my life. And I think that they’re [a] positive energy, and really, just the people that inspire me to be [a] better [version of] myself. And when I’m around my teammates, I want to be a better player. Honestly, the biggest challenge, especially like when I started high school, is definitely [the] mental challenge with basketball, like confidence and nerves is a really big thing that I’ve been working on. It’s really scary sometimes when you’re going against players that are really good, or you’re playing in front of a lot of people, or college coaches. There’s just a lot of pressure that comes with basketball.”
“I love basketball, but I don’t love it that much. I love it to the extent that I probably have about five more years left for me, but after that, I think I’m gonna be ready to start my career, my job and my life. Right now I’m thinking that I want to study political science and go to law school and see what careers come out of that because there’s a lot of different ways I could go. I’ve always, like, really been interested in history and how it kind of shapes the world we live in today. I definitely think that we can use more people that think differently and just people who have different opinions in the world. I think that that’s definitely something that I’m supposed to do. I really want to help people and share what I know.”
“I read ‘Just Mercy’ [by] Brian Stevenson.. It’s really a challenging read, but it was probably one of the best books I’ve ever read. I really enjoyed it. It’s the story about incarceration specifically, like, the Black community and death row. And , it just opened my eyes to a whole part of the system that I’d never really thought of before, and how corrupt it can be. And that really just made me think this is what I want to do, like an ‘aha’ moment. I feel like only so many people can get the help that they need, and only so many people’s stories can be told. I think that [storytelling is] really interesting, and I think it’s [a] really important thing that has to be done.”
“Honestly, [I don’t know where I want to go] yet [after high school]. I kind of have a lot of stuff to figure out, like location wise and also basketball wise. There’s a lot of factors in there, because I don’t want to go somewhere just for basketball, because I also care a lot about my education. [But] playing basketball is also really important to me. So there’s definitely some things that need to be sorted out before I can make a decision.”
“I love reading. It’s like one of the only hobbies that I have outside of basketball in school, and that used to be my [college path]. Before I started thinking about political science, I was thinking about journalism [and] English literature, mostly because I just love reading. I love writing. My favorite book [is] definitely [either] ‘Just Mercy’ and this book [I read] called ‘Children of Blood and Bone.’ It’s a whole series. It was kind of like fantasy, a little bit. [It reflects patterns in the] real world. We’re reading ‘Night’ [by Elie Wiesel] in AP Lang. It’s about the Holocaust from a first hand account [of] a survivor, which I always [find interesting to read]. Memoirs are always super awesome to read. They just feel more real. It’s really short, but it’s like the type of story [that’s] very interesting to read about. It’s one of my favorites [already]. I think some of the best books I’ve read were definitely at school because I feel like they’re always [unexpected]. You would never think to read that on your own, like I would never think to read a holocaust memoir, but now I’m reading it, and I’m [thinking], this is so good. This is [a] really great book. I think that everybody should have to read in schools. If I was in charge of education, everybody would be reading all the time, because then they’d learn. I’ve always kind of been a reader, and then when I got into middle school, I was probably reading a couple books a year, nothing crazy. But like now it’s just like my biggest peace. When I’ve got basketball in school, and I feel really stressed out, it just feels like a break. It’s like I have a little story, kind of something that’s independent. Sometimes, I feel like I can be learning something, or sometimes I could just be reading, something that’s super cool and super fun. So reading [is] just my outlet, it’s just kind of my free time. I read on the bus when I’ve got a little journey ahead of me.”
“I usually like [writing in class]. I really like AP Lang. It’s like a class [that] doesn’t feel like a class. Not to be corny, but I feel like I’m kind of just doing something I enjoy. So it doesn’t feel like work. It’s not work when you’re having fun. We’ve only read memoirs, so like [some are] definitely historical. We’ve only read two [books in class]. [‘Night’] is only the second. We read ‘The Glass Castle,’ which was another good one. That was such a good book. I really liked it. I was finished before we wrote the essay and stuff on it. And I was like, ‘wow.’ This is such a great story. It’s so interesting. Always, to see how other people live, especially since we kind of live in an urban area, and we didn’t really grow up that way. To read about somebody who grew extremely opposite [and] extremely different than I did. [Things like that] would just never even come to my brain because I’ve never [experienced] that before.
“[In the future], I kind of want to see [myself] being the best, healthiest version of myself. I want to have great relationships with the people around me. [Additionally,] I want to have money. I need to have money to support my lifestyle. But, I also want to make sure that I’m still being a good person, caring for the people around me. I also hope that I have accomplished some of the things that I talked about, like [a] political science degree, starting law school, kind of figuring out where I want to go and really, just like serving the people around me is definitely 26 year-old me. Serving the people around her, that’s what she does.”
What are your favorite books? Leave a comment down below!
