Sisterhood

One trip that has left a humongous impact upon me is the trip I took to Colorado with my softball team. This trip not only was one of excitement and adventure, but also one that taught me the strength of sisterhood.

Flying into the Denver Airport, I could already feel the thin air depriving my lungs of the precious oxygen they so desperately needed. After a long and stressful wait for our bags, we finally got to walk to the AVIS counter and request our brand new rental car. We opened the doors to our White Toyota Camry, new to the road, with only a mere 500 miles, and we immediately began driving to our hotel, ready to get out of the blazing Colorado sun. My teammate and her mom were rooming with my mom and I, and we all blasted the music, singing along as we drove down the straight Colorado highways.

Later that day, my team mate and I went into the little town of Golden, reminiscent of our small hometown in Enumclaw. We explored the little shops, and put our feet in the icy cold river, not able to keep them in for very long.

The next day, my mom and I went to visit the beautiful campus of Colorado School of Mines. I aspire to be a biomedical engineer and Mines is one of the top engineering schools in the country. The campus was so amazing and I fell in love as I walked the cobblestone paths up to the massive brick buildings. I met with the softball coach, and we talked of possible scholarship opportunities, because I am very interested in playing softball in college.

The first night, we met with our team in the busy city of Denver. The sun was down, and the bright lights of the city were awakened. We went to go see an improve comedy show at the Bovine Metropolis. The show that they had rehearsed was so perfect, because it was based around a Sports Center theme, and they had an entire softball team seated in the first row. We laughed so hard that we were crying, and to put the cherry on top, they decided to bring one of our own up onto the stage. In fact, they picked the shyest of the bunch, and she was so frozen in fear that she could not say anything.

On the field, we fought with heart in soul in every pitch. We played teams ranging from Idaho, to Texas, and Illinois. Although our team did not compete as well as we had hoped, we laughed and smiled the whole time. At one point, one of our games was delayed in fear of oncoming lightning. The first crack emerged right as I was up to bat. The umpires shooed us back to our dugouts, as the rain started to pour. Being from Washington, our team was used to the oncoming rain, and in fact we had even played in snow. Our team jumped onto the field, blasting the “Cupid Shuffle” and dancing in the puddles that were soon forming. The poor Arizona girls were huddled in their dugout, as we sang and danced until the sun shown back down upon us.

As we boarded the plane, it really began to hit me, that although softball and the places we travel may only be a small part of my life, the bonds and the friends that I have made while playing have strengthened me and my teammates as well. Now I not only call them my team, I call them my sisters.