To put my badminton journey into perspective, I would love to grant the title, “Significant Progress” to Badminton instead. 13th of February, when it first started, I felt lost… even hopeless but I had a goal! It wasn’t to make the team even though I wanted to, it was to build the path that I could take my slow steps on. To my surprise, the steps or the progress I made were definitely not small. I had a slow start as I barely kept up with the coach’s drills throughout the first few sessions. However, each session I felt a sense of accomplishment and improvement that drove me and established my goal further. Playing badminton professionally for the first time allowed me to identify my weaknesses in the sport. One of them being my grip and form. Fixing those throughout the sessions made me understand the importance of little things, reflecting on Arundhati Roy’s ‘The God of Small Things’ which we were reading in English. Fixing the grip and form allowed me to generate more power than I anticipated to reach far more precise shots of Clear, Drop, Drive, Smash and Net shots.
As the last few weeks of the third quarter of school arrived, we were flooded and flushed with assignments. Continuing practice was extravagant but I knew it would be worth it to spend even that last bit of sweat to improve. The selections were around the corner and no matter how much I wanted to make the team, the odds weren’t on my side as a beginner surrounded by a great team of players. Yet, to say the least, I am so happy to be granted a chance to play with such a great team. That Saturday, I came to school like I always did for training, except I didn’t have breakfast (worried about my stomach getting sick) and the amount of anxiety I felt was something that I never had experienced through badminton. I started with a couple of wins but unfortunately, after losing 3 of my matches I had to let go of my dreams of going to Mumbai, India. That day I realized, the journey leading up to the outcome is far more important and is in a way a life lesson of many more to come. Nevertheless, the experience and the fun I had with my teammates are not describable in words, and will always be remembered. I went home with a life lesson and a goal in mind to continue my badminton journey outside of school. “I can’t change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination.” Jimmy Dean once said.
