The Reasons Behind My Why

During my journey as a  Greenville University athlete, I was sat down during a meeting and asked: “What is your why? What is the reason you do what do?” Hearing that question made me think about my journey and how it lead me in the position that I’m in today and also how it shaped me to be the person that I’ve grown to be. 

My last game with Snyder.
Source: Mark Bariyge

During my time here at Greenville, I’ve had different influencers come in an out of my life. Some were positive and others negative. When I think about the different people that have made a difference in my life, I think about Cory Snyder. Snyder is one of my former teammates. He showed me in many ways that life is beyond football and if I want to be able to make a difference in other peoples lives I must be willing to put away my selfish acts and be willing to pour into others. Another person that has been a good influence in my life is Coach Flannery. Flannery is the type of person that always found the positive in any situation no matter the outcome. By witnessing that, it taught me that no matter the situation, whether it’s positive or negative, it’s about finding a way to respond. The little things are a big factor in “my why.”

One of my why’s is due to the adversity I faced during my high school football career. My ability, size, and skills were always doubted by other people. Therefore, I used that as motivation to prove people wrong and came up with my personal quote, “Doubters are idiots.” The reason why I believe that is because only I can control what I can control. I didn’t let other people’s doubts about me stop me from chasing my dreams to play college football especially after being named a starter my junior year to getting benched my senior year. 

Christmas throwback with my mother.
Source: Justin Willis

My birth mother is another reason why I do the things that I want to succeed in. Unfortanulty, when I was five she passed away. In remembrance of her, I would always write her initials on my wrist-tape before every football game. By doing that and performing to the best of my ability, win or lose, I always felt that I made her proud and that’s the only motivation I needed. Even though she isn’t here on Earth with me, she pushes me to do my best and I miss her dearly. Thankfully, God has blessed me with a stepmother that loves me unconditionally and has been a huge piece in my life.

If it wasn’t for, “my why,” only the Lord knows which direction my life would’ve gone. Thankfully, during my journey as an athlete, I have had numerous people outside of my family that gave me an unlimited amount of support, especially some of my childhood friends I grew up with like Micah Walker, Kolton Pierce, and Matthew Sandlin, and my teammates Mark Baryige, Sean Brooks, and many others. People like them are the reason why I kept striving to be better than I was the day before. Therefore, I have nothing but love for them. While “my why,” for football is over, my journey in this life is far from it. 

My journey is far from over.
Source: Dana Fitch

 

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