Monologue

In the ninth grade I tried out for my school’s JV softball team.  After 3 long days of try-outs, I made the team!  I was ecstatic and couldn’t wait until the first day of practice!  The first day of practice was on a cold March day.  The field was still hard and rocky from the winter.  I didn’t think my coach would have us do anything but the basics since it was the first day, but I was wrong.  About an hour into practice she tell all the girls to line up at 1st base.  One by one, each girl ran and slide into second.  I have never been good at sliding.  I always was always hesitant when it came to sliding.  By the time it was my turn I had all ready thought of every excuse to get out of sliding, but I figured as a new freshman on the team I had to go through with it.  And I did.  I ran and awkwardly slid into second base.  The entire team cracked up and the coach gave me a confused look.  You would never be able to tell I had played softball my entire life.  The coach told me to try it again.  Now i was afraid, but once again i didn’t want to chicken out.  So I started running and went I felt close enough to the bag I went into the slide.  That’s when I heard my leg crack.  I knew i broke it but didn’t want to believe it.  My coach told me to get up and walk it off, but I couldn’t get up.  I couldn’t move.  I broke my fibula in two places and was in a cast for a month, then P.T for another month after that.  I missed the entire season!  Looking back on that day, I should’ve trusted my gut.  If I would’ve told my coach from the start I wasn’t comfortable sliding it would’ve saved me 2 months as the freshman on crutches in the halls of my high school.