Assertion- This I Believe

This I Believe
Larry - Bowling Green, Ohio

Larry’s story shows why sports are an escape for so many people. In college Larry began to run in order to lose weight, he enjoyed it so much that he has been running ever since. He explains in the essay that, “I started running to propel the process (of weight loss), and discovered that I loved it. It became a daily practice, in a life formerly devoid of ritual.” Tragically, Larry was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, and can no longer run.
In my short lifetime I have played almost every sport you can think of. Anything like baseball, basketball, football, tennis, hockey, and I even ran track in middle school. From a young age, if the weather was nice, I would always be outside playing some sport in my back yard. Playing sports competitively has become such a monumental part of my life that I have forgotten why I first began playing them; an escape.
Whenever I am stressed or angry, sports provide a natural medicine. All of a sudden when I lace up my shoe, kick that ball, or throw a pass all of my worries disappear. My first reaction after I grow angry or stressed is to go on a run. Much like Larry, running provides the strongest medicine.
Whenever I run everything that is worrying me is all of a sudden wiped away. The only thing on my mind is that next step. Gliding by everything and enjoying the lush scenery; breathing in the crisp air, inhaling with enough force for the air to touch the bottom of my lungs. The air, the sports, the escape cleanse me.