Pregionals

Tomorrow is my last Luna practice.

Two practices a week, several tournaments a semester, extra skills/vet practices, conditioning and weightlifting...combined over four years, I have spent 827 hours running after a plastic disc with some great people. Actually, that's a lie. If you know me, you know I don't do math – I just typed a random number in there.

But still, this last practice is staring me in the face. It’s acting like a normal Thursday: Talia and I will struggle to get out the door of #club727 in time for our 10am classes, I’ll consider going to lunch with Arty, Dani, Zina, and co. at Rollins at 1 (though some of the previously named individuals have begun what I’d call a cyberbullying campaign against me for turning down this particular lunch invitation one too many times), and I’ll try to hydrate for practice and not eat pizza right before sprinting.

It’s funny – in writing down my typical Thursday routine, I realize that Luna (and my own laziness) has a strong showing. Loathe though I am to engage in any of the kind of “feelings talk” so beloved by some of my teammates (cough, Z), I think that before this last practice some emotion might, in fact, be merited. I’ve been a part of Luna since the day I walked into my freshman dorm for the first time and was greeted by former Luna captains and RAs Abbey Hewitt and Rebecca Wang.

Luna players and coaches taught me how to throw a flick, how to sprint, how to lift weights, how to play zone D, and how to stay mentally strong through snow, heat, aggravating van drives, and an 8-hour playing day. They also taught me how to not only be comfortable in my body, but how to love its power, grace, and speed. They taught me how to be a part of a team, and I have reveled in four years of playing, dancing, studying, and living alongside some of the most amazing women I have ever met.

Keith asked me to write a blog post about the upcoming regional championship. Sorry, Keith. When I sat down to write this (OK, I’m writing this in class while ignoring a lecture on the International Criminal Court – I’m a second-semester senior), I realized that what I’m scared and excited about right now isn’t Regionals this weekend in Tallahassee. It’s tomorrow night, 7:30-9:30 pm on McDonough.