Meryl's+Page

//My name is Meryl Meisner and I am a junior at the University of Colorado, majoring in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences and minoring in Russian Studies. I have been an athlete my entire life. // Hit Me media type="file" key="meryls only.mp3" width="240" height="20"

 I believe in rugby. I believe that sports can not only bring people together but brings people out of their cocoons. Sports push people to explore and pull people together from everywhere. Sports give people a connection that is unbreakable.

 As a very lost, out of state freshman at the University of Colorado, banished to live in off campus housing, I needed something to look forward to, to connect me to campus life, and to be happy about. While at the student recreation center I saw a flyer for a rugby meeting and went. They were friendly during the meeting and their pictures looked cool, so I decided to go to their practice. As the weeks passed, I became more confident with myself. I realized I was in better shape than a lot of the girls and that my tackles and passes were good. I also learned that a freshman on a club team is considered a “rookie”. A rookie has all the responsibilities of a mule. A rookie shleps everything back and forth and then during down time at tournaments and on the road trips is required to do tasks such as, drinking ketchup or cinnamon, or downing salt packets. I had no respect on the team. I was at the bottom of the totem pole, but I stuck with it because I wanted to be part of a team and I needed some competition. As I improved at the game, my friendships on the team improved. Through this I earned respect from my teammates and as we got to know one another, we became close friends. I fell in love with the sport and the girls. This sparked a new interest for me and made me enjoy the past three years more than I would have. And next year, I will even be living with some of my teammates.

 In the beginning of January my team went to a tournament at Stanford. We made it into the top bracket and on the second day, during the first game, one of my teammates broke her nose. Along with this injury, she also got a horrific gash that bled nonstop. After every play we had to re-tape her face to stop her bleeding. By of the day her face was covered in tape. It had swollen so much she looked like an alien from the movie “Avatar”. It didn’t matter how much pain she was in or how much she was bleeding, she was committed to our team and the game.

 With rugby, yes talent was involved, but that’s not what I think made me bond with my team. We practice twice a week, travel to our games together, and hang out other times. When we win, we’re close and when we lose we’re even closer. It’s not necessarily about winning. Yes it’s important, but that’s not what brings people together. It’s being covered head to toe in bruises and sweat, working hard together and pushing each other to be better.