9/8/25

 Prompt Response: 

A gender expectation that was imposed on me when I was younger was that I had to play a sport, specifically soccer. Despite this being imposed on me at a very young age, I loved it. Playing soccer brought me so much joy, but after years of playing, it just wasn't the same. I began to realize that my love for the game had slowly faded away, and instead it was the time I was spending with friends that really brought me joy. Despite this expectation being one that I enjoyed while it lasted, it was still a difficult one to deal with. Being on a soccer team meant you had soccer practice twice a week and 1 to 2 games on the weekends. In the summer, the scorching heat slashes at your skin while you scramble around scrapping for a ball. In the winter, the freezing air and violent winds numb your bones and dry up your mouth. In addition to the physical exhaustion you go through you must also maintain your jerseys, shorts, socks, shin guards, and shoes clean before each game and practice. From being extremely tired all the time to always losing a sock or a jersey, this expectation came with many difficult tasks that I realized wasn't worth doing anymore. Near the end of my soccer journey I realized that sports were something I had to put all my attention on, something that I had to sacrifice parts of my life to succeed as a soccer player. I just didn't have enough love for the sport to commit to such a journey. It almost felt disrespectful to the sport to run on the pitch without 100% of my dedication, so I made the decision to step away from the sport I loved so much.

Summary:

I have been imposed with many expectations but not all of them were bad or something I didn't wanna do. Some of them were actually enjoyable.

Reflection: 

My reflection would be that the people imposing expectations of me weren't doing it to make me struggle, but rather to help form my character and I'm grateful now that I was surrounded by people who believed I could do anything.