My First Family – Trenton, New Jersey
Photo Courtesy: My Mom
Leaving my family in Trenton, New Jersey always overwhelms me with sadness, because I never know when I’ll have the opportunity to see them again. As I approach New York Penn Station my emotions of sadness and loneliness begin to fade because I am almost “home,” and reunited with my second family.
My Second Family – Baruch College, New York City
We aren’t your typical family with two parents and a few children. In this family there are five parents, 11 daughters, and four Godfathers. Our coaches are the “parents,” my 10 teammates and I are the “daughters,” and our trainers are the “Godfathers.” Instead of being known as the “abnormally large family,” we prefer the Baruch College Lady Bearcats. Our Polish, Haitian, Trinidadian, and Ecuadorian backgrounds prove that basketball is thicker than water.
Just as any family we have our disagreements. Usually over who should sit in the back of the bus, where we should stop for dinner, and of course, who gets to choose our outfits on game days. Having 11 different personalities we are bound to have conflicts, but more than anything it’s our love for basketball and each other that gets us through. Whether it’s getting manicures and pedicures, random trips to Insomnia Cookies at 2 A.M., or endless trips to Chipotle for “water cups” filled with lemonade, our bond is unbreakable.
Sisterhood
It is our sisterhood off the court that has allowed us to be ranked 24th in the nation by USA Today Sports Division III Top 25 Coaches’ Poll. As my grandmother always tells me “you can choose your friends but you can’t choose your family,” this is true for the family I have grown to love in New York City.
