"No matter how busy you are, you must take time to make the other person feel important."

I am not sure where I have heard this quote, but it is very important. College, if summed up in one word, could just be called "busy." This week was a very exciting week and jammed packed with things to do.

Monday was our scheduled sprint work day. Have you ever heard of parachutes? Well I had always heard of NFL pros using them to strengthen their legs. Little did I know I would be introduced to them quick, fast, and in a hurry. We started with our usual stretches to ensure we do not injure ourselves. If you do not stretch and think it is pointless, think again. Injuries can happen anytime and anywhere and stretching is a small part that will help serve as a prevention to keep them away. Anyway, we strapped up with the parachutes lying behind us, with the belt around our waist. Sounds easy right? Just run with the parachute flying behind you. Well, think again, what looks easy is not always the situation. We took off and I thought that my quads had ripped into pieces. It was uncomfortable at first, only because I had never run with a parachute. After a few times, I began to feel myself getting faster and faster. Finally, after about five times of that, we took them off. Our strength coach, Jeremy Cole, said, "Ok, now take them off and we are going to sprint without the chutes." At this time I was thinking, "Oh my goodness, my legs are dead and he is crazy." Well, I wait for the whistle, hear it, and then took off. Wouldn’t you know, I was running faster! Day by day, I feel myself becoming stronger and faster. Now that’s over, what could Tuesday possibly bring that can come close to touching Monday?

Cheese, it is now Wednesday, Picture Day. Today we have no workouts on account of we are women, and our hair is No. 1 priority on picture day. Thank you coach Andrew Calder, for understanding and being so nice as to not make us sprint and mess our hair up. So we all know how picture day goes. It is basically a day for us to stand in front of the mirror, even more then we already do, and beautify ourselves for the pictures to come. Now, if you do not know, Carmichael Auditorium, (where we play most of our home games and where Michael Jordan first played) does not have air conditioning yet. (Not until next year when Carmichael will be renovated, but that is a whole different story). Anyway, it was hot. We did our individuals first, then the team pictures, and finally pictures by class. The freshmen had to do action shots afterwards for the program because we obviously haven’t played yet. Pictures are over with, and we got a day off. Back to work on Thursday.

The regular Thursday is the only day that never seems to be interrupted with other events. Here is the usual routine: individuals at 9:15 a.m, class from 12:30-3:15, then weights at 4. Weights went by fast today but were nothing like Tuesday. It consisted of front squats, shoulder work, and all that good stuff. We did our ab work and then finished with our little saying. We also constructed a new saying for game time, but you will just have to come to the games to hear it. It is a coach Cole original. After weights the freshmen usually have study hall at 7. Now, every Thursday we can go to Fellowship of Christian Athletes, or as most of you might know it, FCA. It is basically a bible study for athletes, and sharing stories. All in all, it is a very beneficial one hour spent. Thanks to coach Sylvia Hatchell for allowing us to miss one hour in Thursday study hall, to study perhaps the most important thing in our lives, the Bible. We left FCA, went to study hall from 8-9 and the day was finally over. Thursdays are so slow, earning the name, “Turtle Thursday.” Yes finally, T.G.I.F.

Friday, enough said. This is the day when we go to class and, well, you’re done. You can do things on your own, such as run or shoot, or whatever you feel you need to work on. It is also a good time to get out and support other sports teams, but this Friday is a special one. Today we have a dinner with all the people who donate to our Endowed Scholarships. These are usually people who graduated from UNC, are avid fans of the particular team they are supporting, and care a lot about the players. It is a chance for us as athletes, to meet the people who are essentially making this dream possible for us. Attending UNC, or any university or college for that matter, is not a cheap thing. At UNC alone there are about 450 student-athletes under scholarship, give or take a few. That adds up to become a whole lot and I appreciate all the people who make this dream possible for all of us. It is amazing to be in college, gaining an education while playing the game you love. I know that some people take this for granted and do not slow down long enough see who is making this dream a reality. I am very blessed to be at this university and even more blessed to be with the coaches and teammates that I have.

Life is an experience in which we have to take the time to fill in our own blanks. My high-school coach, Steve Helton, always said, "Take that bull by the horns, and push it where you want it to go. Don’t let it push you." Coach Helton was full of random country sayings, but they were simple, to the point, and made sense. Like for instance, "You’re just going through the motions; play with that passion that is inside of you." Sometimes we take life for granted and only live by going through the motions each day. I will admit, I was doing that exact same thing about a few weeks ago. Then, I received a call last week.

My high-school coach called me and told me about a little girl from Kentucky. Her name is Lyndsay and she has recently been very sick with meningitis and was placed in a hospital in Cincinnati. She now is in rehab gaining strength and trying to learn how to use her body again, including how to walk. Think about that: How many steps do you take a day? Yet again, another thing that we all can sometimes take for granted. Anyway, my coach told me all about her and how she was my biggest fan and how much she loved the great game of basketball. Her birthday was coming up in the next few days and she had a special request. For her birthday, all she wanted was something autographed from me. Now, in my life, I have had a lot of honors that I have been very blessed to receive. But this young girl asking for me to autograph something for her is the biggest honor I have had yet. So I autographed a picture, sent her a stuffed animal of the UNC mascot, and a UNC notebook. I was so touched and still am today. For Lyndsay and anybody out there who has dreams of doing big things but may be in tough situations, stay strong. You are incredible and always remember, "If it’s to be, it’s up to me."

Stay cool and keep ballin y’all.

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