Blog Prompt

Sports were a big part of my life growing up. My dad was and still is very much into sports. Like any child, they want approval from their parents so I thought the best way to do this was through sports. Before I got into playing sports on a team I would just watch them. I would sit and watch all sports with my dad. I loved to be able to spend time with him while doing this. I would ask questions about the players and the rules of the game. He loved that I took interest in his greatest interest. It was definitely our way of bonding. Luckily I was blessed enough to grow up in a house that had a basketball court along with a huge backyard. When the weather was nice my dad, my brother and I would go outside for hours and play basketball or throw around a football. It was never competitive though; always for fun. Once I got a little older, around 11, I started organized sports. I was never a typical tomboy so I wanted to join something "more girly". I did tap and jazz dance along with volleyball. To be completely honest our volleyball team sucked. When we lost I always felt bad. Growing up watching professional athletes I always thought that if someone was to play sports they had to be amazingly good. I didn't realize that most professional athletes had to work hard to get where they were at. I did dance for three years and volleyball for four. I really enjoyed both sports. It was a fun activity to do outside of school because it kept me busy and I made a ton of friends. I quit dance because the school I went to was known for having amazing dancers. I thought all of them were so beautiful and such great dancers; I just didn't measure up. I think my school, as well as the media influenced me into thinking that being a dancer had to do as much about your looks as it does your abilities. I ended up quitting volleyball because of an injury, not because of any media influence. Present day I do not play any organized sports. It's something that does not really interest me. I still love watching them because I think it's a great social activity and a great way to bond with people. I do think our society influenced me when I was younger that I couldn't play football or basketball anyplace than my backyard. Growing up I was never exposed to female athletes playing "masculine" sports. Because of that I always had it in my mind that only men were allowed to play those sports on teams. I along with many girls conform to society at a young age that if they do play sports it has to be the less masculine ones; the ones that maybe aren't as physical and don't require as much strength. Personally, even if society did except women playing more masculine sports I don't think I would want to