Ever since I started playing football back in third grade, I feel I have always had an injury throughout a sports season. No matter the injury, though, my dad always made me play through whatever it was. Whether it was to teach me to be tough or what, it has changed who I am today.

My first real injury started in fourth grade when I tore my MCL. This injury made me to where I could barely walk, and I had to use crutches. This injury happened on a Monday night, but I knew I had a game on Saturday that I didn’t want to miss. My dad was going to make me miss the game.That was until it was halftime of the game and we were losing by two touchdowns. I ended up playing, limping down the field and we ended up winning by two touchdowns, and I had three myself. Every football season since that I have had an injury, whether it was a rolled ankle or my arm was cut open by cleats.

None of these injuries were capable of crippling me in the future, until I suffered a broken foot in the first four minutes of the first quarter of my first game of my senior football season. During the game I did not think my foot was broken, and I just thought it hurt a little, but it would be okay. The day after the game I knew it was broken because it was swollen and purple. I talked to my parents about what we should do and my dad told me that I should play and just take it easy. I was on crutches for about a week until the day of the game, and then I played. The whole game it hurt, but I still played. I told my dad that I don't think it was worth it to play, but my dad told me that it was my last season and I’d regret not playing.

I ended up playing the entire season until the last game because I had a pretty bad concussion. Once the last game ended I finally went to the doctor where I found out that I had a Jones Fracture. A Jones Fracture is the worst fracture to have in your whole body because it doesn’t heal. The doctors told me I couldn’t play basketball, but I have been playing anyway. I know I should not play, and I still might stop playing, but I would hate to miss my senior season.

My view on playing through injuries kind of varies. I believe that there is a difference between playing with an injury and playing hurt. In my opinion, anybody can play hurt and everyone should play through being hurt, but playing through an injury is kind of different. I have played through lots of injuries, and I know in about thirty years I am going to kick myself in the butt for it, unless I take good care of myself. Knowing myself, though, I will probably not take anything easy and my body will always hurt.

A wise man once told me that if you spend lots of time in the weightroom then you will build enough muscle around your bones that your bones will not break. Most of the reason that I wanted to play through all the injuries that I have had is because my dad told me that when he was a little kid that he would have played through all of the injuries that I have suffered. In conclusion, I believe that playing through injuries is not the smartest thing in the world, and I do not think I would let my kids do it just because there is so much more in your life than just sports.

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