Unexpected Participant Anonymous

One of my greatest joys in the world is the feeling of ice crunching under my skates. I love playing ice hockey. It has been a major part of my life since I was seven years old. I started out figure skating, then one day I noticed the kids my age on the neighboring rink skating around in padded uniforms, chasing a rubber circle. It looked like fun. So, just before I was supposed to learn how to jump, I traded my figure skates in for a bag of equipment and a stick. I was a little intimidated at first because I was the only Asian kid on the ice, but once I realized how much I enjoyed ice hockey, nothing fazed me. I kept my focus firm as I worked hard to catch up with my team. Soon, I was playing on the best traveling team in Fort Wayne, and we advanced to two international tournaments in Canada. I was selected as one of the top 50 prospects in the Midwest during the USA Hockey Development Camp. For a long time, I could not imagine a future in which hockey was not the center of my life. As I matured, though, my priorities changed.

Midway through my high school career, having driven 100,000 miles and spent over 10,000 hours playing in ice hockey practices and games, I felt like I was spread too thin. I had to decide between trying...