Letter To My Younger Self: It's OK To Be Great

Hey Pey,

You at 18. I'm writing this to you at the start of your freshman year at O'Dea. You are just settling in and things feel pretty good right now.

You have met a lot of new friends and you still have your boys from middle school.

Basketball is still your thing. You know you are good at it but you are careful not to show it too much. You are afraid to make your friends think you are trying too hard or doing too much and mess up the friendships you have.

Sophomore year is going to hit different. After starting on JV as a freshman, you will make the varsity team but end up riding the bench all year and wishing you still played JV or even transfer.

Going from starting on JV to riding the bench will affect your mentality all year.

Around the same time a lot of your friends will leave transfer or give you a reason to stay away from them. The group you had will start to break up

Those moments taught me something important. Riding the bench all sophomore vear forced me to stay in the gym and keep working when no one was watching. I spent extra hours shooting and lifting, trying to get better.

Losing friends that year showed me that not every relationship lasts forever- the way you feel about people in your life might change but that can't change how you approach the day

Both experiences pushed me to figure out who I really was without leaning on everyone else.

The biggest lesson I want you to hear is this. Do not be afraid to be good at something. Do not be afraid to stand out.

You do not have to hold back or play small just so your friends don't think you are doing to much. Own your talent on the court. Stay humble but stop holding back to fit in. And believe that you can make your dreams come true. You will realize that later on and it changed how you approached everything.

Here is my advice. Keep showing up for the work even when it is quiet. Reach out and build new friendships even when it feels awkward. Trust the process on the court and off it. You are not behind. You are right where you need to be.

The freshman who was nervous about seeming like he was doing too much grew into someone who is still playing ball, still improving, and has built friendships at O'Dea.

You went from no minutes your sophomore year to starting as a junior and then starting at point guard your senior season. You made it through that tough sophomore year. You learned how to keep going even when your role on the team and your friend group and family changed around you.

You are going to be good. More than good. Keep your head up.

Keep working. The best parts of your story are still ahead of you.