First Out the Door

During my fourth year in high school, one of the events that I participated in during the annual Intramural sports program was Water Polo. As expected, the team was composed of mostly varsity players — oddly enough, from the Men’s Basketball and Swimming teams. I felt like I didn’t belong, and I decided to just fulfill my reserve role.

Practices went by fast and, because of the size, the team was poised to dominate the competition. We were odd-numbered and I sparingly saw practice time — and I was fine with it, just as long as I get my moment when the actual competition begins.

Sadly, that didn’t come to pass.

The team racked up an impressive undefeated record, while I got a nice tan on the sidelines. I felt so underutilized and under-appreciated that at times I didn’t even suit up anymore. The team didn’t even know I was part of the team until I told them that I was — and even then I don’t think that they even cared.

Come the championship match, every other member was rearing to go. I sat on the sideline — like I always did — fully dressed in civilian attire. At about two minutes in to the match, I stood up from my seat and I made my way out of the swimming pool area. The roar of the crowd reverberated throughout the entire school, drowning out the sound of splashing and the creaking of the hulking metal gate that I used to get out of the area.

As luck would have it, one by one my teammates suffered from cramps or other injuries, until they were one man short of an active roster. Sadly, that one man was on the other side of the school, eating a snack and reading a book while lying on his back.

The team soldiered on and won the championship. At the awards ceremony, people urged me to join them at the podium but I refused to do so — it just didn’t feel right. The team hoisted up the trophy, and once again, I watched from the sidelines.

For those of you expecting a door of significance in the story, I'm sorry to disappoint you but it's all just a metaphor of me leaving before I even got started. I know not many of you will read up to this point or even notice this post, but for those who read up to this point, I thank you for your time.

The earth rotates with or without your participation. Life moves on even if you’re not feeling the flow. You’re going to miss a lot of opportunities if you fold every time life deals you a bad hand. It’s one thing to choose your battles, it’s another thing to quit even before you give it a shot. There are many lessons that can be mined from this story, and I guess it’s up to you to take whichever and apply it to your life. Take it from someone who’s catching up to the world.