As if being a teenager is not stressful enough, when you add schoolwork and sweaty uniforms on top of that, it makes for a tired and confused student athlete.

The life of a student athlete comes with many late nights and early mornings. While most students leisurely wake up in the morning and get dressed for school, a student athlete eats breakfast, looks all around the house for different parts of their uniform, and finishes homework (because they got home too late last night from a game to finish it). Obviously, one can see that this lifestyle can melt the brain fairly quickly.

I have played softball since age five, allowing me to become a good multitasker. I have learned to do homework on the bus on the way to a game, practice vocabulary words in between innings with the words written on my hand (praying they will not sweat off again), and think about how to fix my swing while taking notes in class. Now, do not get me wrong: being a student athlete can be rewarding; however, the stress that accompanies remains undesirable.

From the time we lift our heads from our pillow in the morning to the time we take our cleats off after at night, we never stop working. Our minds constantly race and we continue dedicating our lives to what we love. And honestly, even though the whole experience is draining, it also remains one of the best decisions you can make for yourself in high school. Being a part of a team compares to having another family. We win together, lose together, study together, complain, cry, bleed, and become a family together.

Yes, getting home at 12:30 A.M. and still having to shower, do homework, eat and sleep proves difficult but so worth it in the end when looking back and seeing all that you have accomplished. You hold so much pride in your team and school that when you look back, every long night, loss, and hard practice makes you laugh. The thousands of memories, good and bad, remain priceless.

In the end, I will never regret playing softball throughout high school. In fact, my only regret may prove not cherishing the time even more.