Kirsten's Vignette

Saturday morning at 6:30 it was still dark outside and we were stuck in traffic, my father was driving and my mother was sleeping in the passenger seat. On our way to my first level 4 gymnastics competition that started at 8:00 in long island. my heart was pounding, although my parents were more excited than I was, my father was trying to give me a inspirational speech but I wasn’t even listening,  I was too nervous for beam as usual because to me that is my weakest event. As I was imagining my beam routine in my head I hear “Can we play I spy” said my little brother Ethan sitting right next to me, being a good older sister I said “sure” and started to play. We played until he fell back to sleep but I couldn’t sleep because I was still very nervous I kept thinking about what happed a few days before I was practicing and I fell and got beam burn on my thigh (strawberries is what my coach calls it) it hurt so much that every time I got back on the beam I would have a flash back of what happened to me.
    As we stepped out of the car my coach Edger was wearing his sweat suit which was black and white that said Rockland gymnastics academy on it (RGA) as he was telling me and my team mates schedule rotation which was of course beam first than vault, floor and bars last. Anastasia who looked even more nervous than I did and Maura who looked perfectly fine, as always. My hands were shaking and I thought what worse can happen, but I spoke to soon I was first on beam I couldn’t believe it I was so scared. It was time for warm up so Maura, Anastasia and I took our warm-up suits off and started to stretch out. The bell for the first event rang so I had to get on the beam and start. Walking towered the beam tears running down my face my hands shaking thinking about what im about to do, I feel a hand pulling me to them and it was my coach he looked me in the eyes and wiped my face and told me that I was a power gymnast and that to forget my nerves and just let me body do what it does best and go for it looking at him back I could see in his eyes that he really believed in me.

 When I got my head back together it was time for me to compete, I saluted to the judge and started my routine. First I did a leap which is a split in the air, than I did a handstand. I did two fabulous jumps and a dismount which ended my routine. I couldn’t believe it; I got 9.9 out of 10 which is really, really good. I I couldn’t believe it as I turned around I see my coach and my friends running towards me, I felt so proud of myself. The rest of my completion I did perfectly, I got a 9.45 on bars, a 9.75 on floor and a 9.925 on vault which didn’t surprise me at all because vault is my best event. Ever since I loved gymnastics and I never want to stop. Now I am a level 7 and there is nothing that I am afraid to do in gymnastics because when I’m in gymnastics there is no such thing as I can't do or I never will be able to do. GYMNASTICS IS MY LIFE!!!!!!