The Best Pom-Pom Competition Ever
The author of this story has created the collage seen above. (Click to see the full-sized image.)
I was 14 years old. I remember the concession stand smells like Pizza Hut, Connie’s pizza, popcorn, and drinks. This was the last competition of the year and we had come in 1ST place. When we took 1ST place we posed with our trophy and our plague. In our State competition we won 2nd place. I was so proud of myself and my team mates. It made me feel like I can make it.
The competition started at 10 a.m at the UIC gym on Morgan and Roosevelt. It was big and it was loud. We had to stand up and perform in front of 1,000 people and still do our best. I felt really terrified, like what if I make a mistake or our music messes up? I was just scared at the time but this came out to be a success. I had to overcome many different expressions of the audience and judges.
We had no losses but I had to sacrifice many different things like after-school hobbies and family time. I learned to get along with others because we had to get along instead of fighting and not liking each other. We had to get along because of our steady practicing and obedience to our coach. I received a sense of pride and I gained a sense of courage in doing what I do best, and that’s dancing.
I am a strong, sensitive, and humorous. I love to have fun. My weakness is losing anything or anybody. I like hip-hop clothing, yeah classy when I want. I love wearing micros or braids in different styles. I dislike haters (people who don’t like me). I believe everyone should be equal and we should all get along. I admire my mom because she goes to school, works, and takes care of her responsibilities.
My Coach Diane Sims really made this a big success by teaching and working with us. She was a true inspiration. She believed everyone had a chance to be successful. She was a brown-skinned, short goldish-brown hair, pretty nails and a bright smile woman. She disliked when she was trying harder than the people on the team. She walks and talks with pride. I admire her for being a strong black role model to teenage girls. She was a true leader because she made a change in my life today. She worked us so hard with training that included laps, push-ups, squats, and stretches.
Another team, Spencer, told the authorities that we stole their moves, trying to put us down and make us feel bad. This made my team work harder than ever.
