Girl meets

Girl meets soccer

My name is Issabella, but people like to call me Izzy or Bella, don't know.. Don't really care either though. Where I come from, the definition of woman or girl is far different from my opinion personally. Why should I have to stay home and take care of the children? To cook and clean the house? And welcome the " man " when he returns home? Why is it so unfair? Sure , me already graduating from 5th definitely know that girls and boys are very much different. They showed us some pretty interesting things once we entered that room in Mrs. Rodgers class. I sure will miss that old lad though. Even if we didn't get along. Yes, our bodies are different, but more of the parts of our bodies are alike, we both have arms. We both have legs. We both have hair on top of our heads.. Well, most of us. My uncle gone bald so I'm not sure about having hair anymore, and my other one got cancer. But that's a different story for a different day. And I will say, being a girl in the sports world is even harder! I know from experience. Maybe the boys from your world are different.. But from mine, it ain't a good day at the beach at all! Nope it is not! It ain't a sunny day in the valleys. Or, or, a great day with friends! If you're thinking that, it's not! So just clear your head. I also get that more boys are attracted to sports rather than girls. So I grew up playing soccer with
boys. Now that was hard. I was hurt many times emotionally and physically.  I hurt myself so many times.It ain't easy playing with boys. Because I admit, they underestimated me... A lot.

                 Chapter two: 🙍🏻⚽️
Sometimes they gave me pity points. Sometimes they'd just let me get a goal, they wouldn't even try. You're probably thinking I'm crazy that I didn't like the fact that they did that. But I didn't, I wanted a challenge, I wanted a real game, I couldn't learn or pick up things if they just let me win. I didn't like that they thought because I was a girl, I wouldn't be able to do this or that. Other times, some boys would be much worst than me... But, because he was a boy, they didn't underestimate him, they didn't say he couldn't do it, or let him win. They went hard on him and actually tried. And I'm not boasting, but I was definitely better than him. And so right then, I thought they won't stop treating me like this unless I show what I can do and what I can be. To show them I can play like a girl but that wouldn't mean I'd be playing worst. I'd have to try so much harder to prove myself.

                Chapter three: ⚽️❤️
And I gotta admit, the worst thing ... Is when the guys you play with suddenly have a crush on you. that could get ugly real quick. So girls and boys, listen. I get that I'm a girl, on the inside and my appearance, I'm a girl when I'm playing soccer and when I'm not. I get that. But I hate that sometimes when I see their faces, I can just tell what they're thinking. I hate that sometimes they thought I just came to play because I liked someone. When they keep asking
Me but I already told them. I don't like him. I just kept saying " i don't like him" and other times " I don't like them, and I never will, I came here to play soccer because I'm heading towards my dream, not to fall in love. " I'd get so sick of them sometimes. They'd purposely put me on the same team, but that wasn't a problem. As long as we were playing soccer. But soon they'd make jokes saying we were a couple team. But i got over that. What they did next, I got super angry. I realized I always saw them at the corner of my eyes doing something. Like sending each other a signal or a code or something. And they'd do it every time i accidentally touched him or bumped into him. But that wasn't because I liked him, this was soccer. Sometimes we push and shove. We played pretty rough. And worst they brought it up asking about it. But they didn't do that if others bumped into him. I also really hated the fact that they kept saying at the end of the game " ___ played really good today, didn't he? " to try to impress me. And that person who liked me did that too. They would keep doing fancy tricks , it didn't make me fall for them, it made me a better player when I observed and tried the the trick myself. Only person who I felt comfortable around was my cousin, because ... He's my cousin.

              Chapter 4: 👨‍👩‍👦‍👦⚽️
You know how they say friends won't always be here to support you but family will. Well.. In my case, that's really not the case. If that made any sense whatsoever. I can clearly say without any hesitation that my parents and my siblings think my dream of being a soccer player was a joke. Everyone thought so, and I find that it's really not fair if they don't laugh when a guy says that they want to be a soccer player. So growing up without any support from anyone was hard. I remember telling my dad I wanted to be a soccer player, he laughed. And he told me it's not something a girl should play,. And when I told him about how good the boys were, he said, " of course they're good, boys are better in soccer." Right then, I felt horrible, because this is my dad we're talking about. The nicest ( most times ) guy I know! Next, I told my mom, and you know what she told me? She said it was just a phase that I was going through. But after seeing me going out to play soccer everyday, she tried to talk to me about how soccer will change me. I am pretty flexible ,so she said, I was gonna lose that, and become this muscular woman. But the way she had said it, I thought she was saying I'll become the girl version of hulk. But I didn't care, as long I played soccer, I was good. Then she said, maybe I should be a doctor and play part-time. If you think that's ridiculous, guess how I felt. But the saddest thing is... They won't even let me join a soccer team. But they wouldn't be able to anyways. The money and time that goes into these things are so much. My parents work all the time so I knew it was almost impossible. I told a few of the guys I played soccer with, and I was shocked by their responses. They laughed at me... And had a serious case of sarcasm. But how respectful I was when they told me they'd be a soccer player. I was just stunned, and, and , real shocked. I guess they just think that people can't get better overtime. I know I have the talents, I just needed a push. And no one, not even my family did that. So, I gave myself a push. And how glad I am to do it.

              Chapter 4: 💰⚽️
It's no dip that you have to pay to join a real professional soccer team. But now, being already 12 and almost turning 13, I'd have to start from rec.. And that's a long way from club! So I figure it's too late. But my parents also always work and wouldn't have time to drive me to practice and stuff anyways. I always have a dream where my mom would say that they'll put me in a team! But I wake up and of course, that ain't real at all. But what's the point I say. A lot if people from school okay soccer in a team. But... They suck. The guys I play with are the best in school and they just play in the neighborhood like me. They have a future, I just hope I have enough confidence to have one and make it too. I've gotten a lot better. Just because I'm a girl, doesn't mean I'm the worst in the team. I'm not.

                   Chapter 5: ⚽️🌈
I know I'll make it one day. There's no such thing as being too young, but still, I'm only 12 now . But don't worry, you'll see me one day. Scoring a goal for my team 😊