My name is Aaron Oceguera, my dream is to one day become a professional soccer player. Allow me to introduce you to the sport that I love so much and take you into my journey as an athlete so far.I’ve been playing soccer ever since I was a little kid, around 6 years old. Ever since I joined my first club team at the age of 9 I started to think about how much I actually enjoy playing this sport. When I joined my first club team I was nervous and excited at the same time. That feeling of excitement was the reason why I am the player I am today, because if I did not join that team I would have not become the player I am today. My first club team introduced me into a whole new world of soccer. They taught me many skills such as hard work, patience, and sportsmanship. But little did I know, my journey for soccer was just barely getting started.
Firstly, soccer to me is not just a hobby, it’s a passion. This sport has taught me many assets that I could use for my own personal life. Although there have been many failures, It has taught me discipline, determination, sportsmanship, and the feeling of failure. This sport has also given me some of my best friends who will last a lifetime, all thanks to the wonderful sport called soccer. Soccer can bring a random group of guys or girls and turn them into a brotherhood or sisterhood that could last a lifetime. The reason such a thing happens is because they trust each other on the field, they overcome failure together, and their shared hardship and determination. These are just the main reasons why I love soccer so much, but one of my biggest is because although I fail, I never fail to give up.
Secondly, in my journey so far I’ve made countless memories that I know will stick with me for the rest of my life. One of my favorite memories with my current club is when we traveled to St.Louis Missouri for a soccer tournament competing against teams in the National League Midwest Conference. This midwestern tournament includes top tier teams that succeed in their own league back at home that were given the opportunity to travel to St. Louis Missouri to play in this month-long tournament. Although we didn’t win first place we were able to get pretty high in the standings out of 8-10 teams in each bracket/ division. During that tournament, I made many memories such as gaining a stronger relationship with my teammates, learning from other teams on how they play, learning from failure, and gaining more chemistry with my teammates. It was a month-long tournament where we went to St. Louis twice and then the rest of the games were here in Illinois in different parts. This is only one of many memories I have made and different tournaments I’ve been to too. I know that if you give soccer a try, you will be able to create endless life long memories that will stick with you for the rest of your life.
Thirdly, I know that soccer will be able to benefit others because of the following reasons. To start, soccer is a world wide sport that brings people from all over the world together. It helps remove physical and mental health problems because of the following reasons. Soccer keeps you active, teaches you to fail and to not give up, and it fosters teamwork and communication between your teammates. Soccer is a sport that mainly teaches you to stay disciplined and build resilience. Soccer also helps in creating bonds between your teams that could last a lifetime. In soccer there may be a person you will wanna learn from, for example in my life I have idolized Luka Modric as a player because of all of his achievements and we share the same positions. But the one person I truly idolized was Cristiano Ronaldo, he’s the person that made me even want to start taking soccer seriously. His journey and the way he succeeded is truly amazing to me. My goal is to be just like one of them, and I know that if you set your mind to it you too could be able to achieve this goal. In soccer, self- esteem is strongly developed in soccer because of the way it helps you master new skills that you could translate into your own life. Overall, this sport helps bring people together, helps to teach you important life skills for your own life, and builds yourself into becoming a stronger, better version of yourself.
Fourthly, the reason you should try soccer, especially if you’ve never played that sport before , is because there’s nothing to lose from trying. Soccer is all about trying and taking that risk. For example, in professional games many players have to take that risk of taking that shot that might or might not become a goal. You see, in soccer there’s no shame in trying as long as you do your best. As you start to play, you begin with the basics which basically is just learning how to kick a ball. Once you acknowledge that soccer is the sport for you and you begin to take it seriously, only then you will recognize the true value of soccer.The true value or meaning of soccer is the way is connect everyone, the way it gives an emotional shared connection, and the way each team and player has their own story, For example, many players play this sport because of many deeper meanings. I know that for me, one of my main reasons is on how I could truly express my emotions and that feeling I get of comfort whenever I hit that field. Soccer is more than just a game, it’s the way we all share a personal bond in the sport we all love so much. This is why we call it “ The beautiful game”.
In conclusion, whether your dream of becoming a pro soccer player or you just want to play for fun, soccer could truly change your life. I know that for me, soccer changed my life in several ways. Soccer is more than just a game to me. It has taught me many key assets and skills that I will use for the rest of my life. I know that if you give soccer a try, you will fall in love with it. I am speaking from experience because I too felt that same feeling as soon as I started playing soccer. It’s more than just kicking a ball, it’s the emotions you feel and the amount of love you put into it to help you achieve your goals. My name is Aaron Oceguera, and my dream is to one day become a professional soccer player. I hope that I helped you understand what soccer truly means to me, and how it could help you try something new to fall in love with deeply. Don’t be afraid to try “ The beautiful game”, give it a chance and I promise you won’t regret it.
Aaron Oceguera – St. Laurence High School – DMSF Class of 2030
Photo Credit: Jarmoluk – Pixabay