My most life altering moment at the College of Wooster did not take place in the classroom, at any party, abroad or in the office of my advisor. It happened on a Thursday ó Sept. 11, 2008 ó on the Carl Dale Memorial Field.
I thought that tearing my ACL was the worst thing that ever happened to me. In a lot of ways I was right, but surprisingly, I was also very wrong. While it may have been the most painful moment of my life and although rehab was unbelievably challenging, it was not the end.
A career-ending injury is exactly that, but my injury allowed me to reach out to parts of the campus community I would have never pursued otherwise. What the injury brought me more than anything was perspective.
I realized that for too long I had defined myself as an athlete, not a very good one either, and that I had limited my potential to challenge myself and grow as a person. At the end of the day it is still just Div III athletics, and while some people achieve fulfillment from sports at the College, I found them restricting and ultimately trivial.
I decided not to study abroad because I would have rather played soccer and lacrosse, I had resisted getting involved in activities separate from athletics and I did not allow the College to serve my total development as a person.
It ended up taking another knee surgery to finally make this realization stick, but for all the pain and frustration good things came of it. The Wooster Voice gave me an opportunity to still be close to sports even though I was no longer able to participate. I remained involved in college athletics, but now from a new and refreshing perspective.
What I take away from my time at Wooster is reflective of this desire for new perspectives. It is important to create a definition of yourself which serves who you want to be and not who you think you should be.
Seeking challenging and engaging new opportunities all over this campus is something that I would urge everyone to do. There are endless chances to explore parts of yourself you would not have discovered otherwise. With perspective and an honest understanding of yourself it is easier to realize that even the worst situations are not all bad.