There are things in my life which haven’t come easy such as remembering lyrics, but sports come easy to me. I was not blessed with the athletic build, but I love writing about them. I share the same affinity for them I did as a young child.

Growing up on a farm in rural Iowa, there wasn’t much to do. A lot of playing with ant farms and following my dog around took place. A relief from this boredom was playing sports. The first team sport I ever played was soccer at age five. At the time, I loved every moment of it, but it was me and my teammates chasing a ball. At this young age and through my high school days I learned valuable lessons such as teamwork, perseverance and hard work.

I retired from athletics and came to UNI. After a couple years of wanting to be involved with sports, I started writing about them for the Northern Iowan. Through my writing, I have rekindled my love for sports. I have also gained some appreciation for new sports such as women’s basketball and volleyball. 

I have tried to share this newfound appreciation. I have always wanted to inform and raise new points people have not thought of. Sometimes football and men’s basketball are focused on too much. People should realize every sport is important and each should gain the same amount of appreciation.

I have always tried to entertain through my columns. Sports allows people to not think about their lives, and this is what I do with my columns. I want people to enjoy reading them and bring a better mood to their day. Writing and sports are two of my favorite activities and there is nothing better than sharing this with other people.

Writing these columns is a phenomenal opportunity I look forward to writing them until my graduation in May. After graduation, expect to find me in the streets of Cedar Falls telling people how great of a sportswriter I was. While I do not expect this to happen, my life will be alright. Sports have been with me since I was at least five years-old, and my love for writing came while I was in college. Together, they will help lead me into the future.