As I wrote to you guys last time, I mentioned that Wednesdays game might be our last. And indeed it was. We got off to a terribly slow start and couldn't overcome poor shooting and too many turnovers. It was a long and quiet 7-hour bus ride back to Athens, getting us back to the gym at 3 in the morning.
It's been a weird 2 days since we got back. I've been doing lots of stuff with Lykendra but I'm also trying to get all of my stuff ready before I have to leave on Monday. All of my things are packed, with the exception of the clothes and toiletries I will need for the next 2 days. My suitcases and bags are packed to the max and I'm sure they will go over the weight limit but there's nothing I can do to change that! I'm leaving a decent amount of clothes here and I'm even leaving a couple of pairs of shoes! Now if you know me this is a HUGE deal! It hurts me to know that I have to leave shoes behind but I'm sure my mother is rejoicing because she knows just how many pairs of shoes I still have back home!
It's odd to not go over to the gym at night and see the girls and the coaches. It had become part of my everyday routine and now that I'm not doing it, part of me feels empty. I've mentioned this to some of my closest friends and my family but I'm not sure that I want to play again next year. This might come as a shock to a lot of people, but part of me feels ready to move on to the next chapter in my life. I really want to go back to school to get my Masters and stay involved in collegiate athletics by helping student athletes make the transition from being a student-athlete in college to a non-athletic professional after college . Basketball has provided me with some incredible experiences and I've met my best friends thanks to basketball. While there is this big part of me that feels ready to walk away, there's still the competitor in me that isn't ready to hang up her shoes quite yet. To think that Wednesday's game might have been my last basketball game makes me sad. I've got some really big decisions to make coming up.
This season was difficult for me in multiple ways. As hard as it was, it was an amazing life experience that I wouldn't trade for anything, but that doesn't make it any less difficult! I went into this experience extremely naïve about what to expect for it being my first year playing professional basketball overseas. I'm very lucky that I had such a great support system back home in the form of my family and friends.
I have a lot of incredible opportunities available at my fingertips, which can make my decision about what to do next that much harder! I will definitely have to weigh all of my options and take the pros and cons into consideration when deciding, but I know that whatever happens next is the direction in which my life is supposed to go. I'm a firm believer that 'everything happens for a reason,' whether it be the people that come in and out of your life, the places you live, the jobs you do or do not get, or the triumphs and the tragedies you experience. All of these situations shape us into who we are supposed to be. Of course we have some power to decide what direction we want our life wants to take, but I know that I met some of these people for a reason and I will always cherish the memories and friendships I have with them.
I'm definitely excited to get home and see all my friends and family back in Chicago. I land on Monday night and already have plans filling up my whole day on Tuesday and part of the day on Wednesday. I'll head back to Missouri on either Wednesday afternoon or Thursday morning and then my cousin and I are leaving for our Coachella road trip on Sunday! My life is going to take a 180 degree turn between leaving here on Monday afternoon and getting into Chicago on Monday night but I'm ready for what comes next!
I won't be writing on here as much and will probably be changing the name of the blog at some point. I plan to sit down in a few weeks and reflect more on this experience and all the life-lessons I learned (that post will most likely be quite long!)
I just want to say thanks to those of you who check in and read this thing. I don't know who you are, even if there are any of you or if it's just my family, but either way, it's been fun to journal about my experiences. There are quite a few things I didn't write about just to save your eyes from the boredom of reading about another botched Greek speaking attempt on my part or my every day boring life but I think I gave you guys a pretty good glimpse into my life over here. I look forward to being back and will gladly share my experiences with anybody first hand if you want to hear more!
I've got some last minute things to take care of- like cleaning my apartment!! (Aren't you proud, mom?) See you all very soon!
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