An Event That Changed My Life

Lying helpless on the ground is a humbling experience. It was hot that day, a dry heat. Texas summers are brutal, not knowing the exact moment when your body shuts down from dehydration. It was one of the worst summers, with temperatures in the lower hundreds. The grass was dead and the ground was hard and rocky, perfect to dive on. Playing soccer in Texas is odd; the weather is too cold or too hot. The only colors that stood out on the field were the dark blues and blacks of jerseys in a sea of brown. Being a goalkeeper, I have most of the responsibility to keep the team organized, if I fail at that job, it costs a goal. I started to cry from the pain, and blacked out. Breaking my neck definitely changed my perception of life.
We were already losing, and I was close to dehydration myself. My coaches, Kerri and Jerry, were yelling at my defenders to pick it up. I repeated it at the top of my lungs when I had to make sprawling save for the upper corner of the goal. As I threw the ...