A Life Changer

For as long as I can remember sports have been one of the main focuses of life.

Weekends were filled with watching sports games, playing games and going to practices for grade school teams. Every game lasts for ages, which made playing much sweeter. Organized sports became the driving force behind every interest. The weekends playing from dusk until dawn; are some of the best memories of childhood. Sports have also made the bond between father and son much stronger because of the strong connection shared.Sports shape young minds, teaches valuable lessons, and gives hope to millions on an everyday basis.

When growing up young Adam Ricca craved to do anything sports related. Every thought he had was somehow always connected to how he could apply that thought to sports. Adam played on as many organized sports teams as he could as child. Baseball was his favorite even though he was not very good at it. This made him work harder at becoming better because he wanted to be the best on the team. He never did get there but he learned a few valuable lessons along the way.

Adam found that if he worked his butt of at something that mattered to him he would see the results. Another lesson Adam learned was how to be humble. He knew no matter how much work he put in to make himself better, there would always be someone better, faster, stronger. He knew that he had to respect and admire his competition otherwise he would be a sore loser.

As Adam grew older his love for sports grew stronger, but his skill diminished. He was okay with that because he knew he was nothing special. Adam started dreaming about a career linked to sports because he felt he would excel in the field of sports.As Adam got to college he realized that a career in sports was a difficult one to chose. He had no idea what field of sports he wanted to go into because he loved them all. One day he realized that sports may not provide the life he wanted to live so he picked something that would: Construction Management.

Yes it is not sports but it is something that Adam is passionate about and requires a lot of hard work much like sports requires. Adam will always love sports. He will have to watch and admire from far and he is okay with that.All children should be involved in some type of sport activity. Sports teach teamwork, dedication, humility, focus, patience, practice, along with many others.

These characteristics are something that every human is going to need at some point in their life. Sports show how dedication and hard work can pay off in the long run. Nothing in life is going to fall right into place without practicing every day. Without practicing everyday nothing gets any easier. Something people may not realize what sports can teach; is how helping people becomes so rewarding.

Seeing teammates do something well brings just as much joy as if one were to do the act themselves. Playing sports keeps minds focused on other things in life as well. You can apply what sports teaches to pretty much anything in life; school, family, friends, anything that takes hard work to accomplish. Sure not everybody is going to accomplish great things.

The great thing about sports is that it teaches you that no matter what; as long as you put the work in you will reap the benefits. Look at any professional athlete today: Drew Brees, David Freese, Kevin Durant, etc.These athletes all dealt with adversity and overcame that adversity at some point in their career. What they overcame made them into the men they are today and why they are such great role models for anyone to look up to.

My relationship with my father when I was a young teenager was not the best. We loved each other and all, but we did not always see eye to eye and would always have little riffs. One day it all just kind of just disappeared and we started bonding, and now are best friends. This transformation can be credited to sports.

A lot of what we do talk about is sports. We could go on for days about something. Our mutual love of sports is what opened up our conversations to other, deeper topics. We talk about everything now a day and we lean on each other for support whenever the other one is hurting.

He is the best person to look up to as a role model because there is not a better one out there. It seems silly that sports is something that gave us this huge transformation as father and son and best friends; but sports is the basis for everything that happened.Another great thing about sports is that it can connect people when they do not have that much in common. Many friends have met and become better friends because of bonding through sports. Worldwide sports bring people together when there whether it is a happy or sad occasion.

Look at 9/11. People were looking for some way to cope with what had just happened to our great nation. Baseball and football being played only days after what happened giving people hope that our lives could be normal again.In every game someone stood in front of the crowd and gave a speech about what happened and how we needed regularity in our life again and sports was a step towards that. Sports can bring on many emotions like few other things.

There are many times watching a sports programs about how this high school team, a college team, a pro team, heck even a grade school team shows outstanding support to people in tragedy or a person in tragedy. These type of programs help people relate to a similar situation and bring out many different emotions.It seems almost every day there are stories about some athlete going out of their way to help someone in need. This shows what great role models that they are for anyone. There is also the argument that they should not be looked up to because of all the bad decisions they have made If you go online you will find as many stories about an athlete doing good as they are doing badly. They are such great role models because they show you how hard you have to work to get something you really want.

There is a reason pros make it to the pros. They did not just get there by chance. Athletes inspire young children to reach for the stars and is that not what we are taught every day? Maybe the most important thing that sports can bring anyone is friends. Children encounter their best friends through sports when they are growing up. Children spend a lot of time together whether practicing for the games or just hanging out. These times that children spend together often turn out to be the best memories of their childhood.

Friendships made through sports growing up often shape young children into fine young adults. Sports forge great friendships. These friendships are based off of the characteristics that sports teach. Children surround themselves with the right people when they have active participation in sports.

This leads to the children to develop into young adults who have their heads on their shoulders because of the good people they have surrounded themselves with. Sports helps you make friends at any time in your life. We as humans crave interaction with other human beings.Sports is one of the best ways to interact with someone because of the interactions you have on and off the field.

This is the one of the main reasons people identify with sports so well because it is how they make friendships that last a lifetime. In conclusion, I believe sports have played a major role in whom I have become and who I will continue to become. Sports are always going to be an outlet for people to meet each other and connect with people. Sports make relationships stronger and helps a multitude of people be a better people. Sports are something you can always count on to be there for you no matter what and that is why so many people have identified with sports meaning so much in their lives.