Figure skating is my goal and I will not give up!

I call myself an everyday hero because I'm always a person who keeps going and never gives up. I follow my passions and I take pride in what I do. That is my definition of an everyday hero. Even though I can be a bit shy, I am gregarious at times. The struggles I face as a figure skater are falling or not achieving a certain skill level that I expected to get up to. Most people vicariously watch Disney on Ice or the Olympics in front of their television or computer screens, or they learn to skate but give up quickly because they realize it is harder than most people expected. I actually had the courage to get out there and tell my parents that I wanted to learn figure skating. So I went to Palos Verdes Ice Chalet in 2004. It was a hard journey for me, I remember begging and begging to go skating almost every weekend. It was a sacrifice they made for me, because of the amount of money we have to spend, but they did it because they knew I enjoyed it. As soon as my parents knew I enjoyed it, they decided to put me in lessons. Lessons were often tough because they taught me skills I didn't know how to do at first, even though they were actually rudimentary. On my 11th birthday, I had gotten a pair of skates. They were white and beautiful, and I couldn't wait to skate in them. About a year or two after having those skates, they got too small for me and I had to buy new ones. They took a while to break in, but they were still white and beautiful. I didn't always pass every test. When I didn't pass every test, I was often upset. I would take out my anger on my friend, I would cry, I would feel like I wasn't good enough. But everyone around me would tell me that not everyone is going to pass the first time and that not everyone is perfect. To get myself motivated about figure skating, I watch the Olympics or I sometimes draw lots of dresses that I wish I had. I love the embellishments on most of the dresses I see, it really makes the dress stand out. While there are many obstacles I face, I can overcome them. Figure skating has taught me how to face my fears and helped me discover my talent. My main goals are the Olympics and Disney on Ice, I would often watch these shows because I want to learn from other people and it's another way to help me set my goals and get myself motivated. As I began to show progress, I got private lessons. I chose my coach, Amanda, because I felt like she would help me get to my goals. She did help me, but I stopped skating with her. I switched to a new coach, Nathalie. Nathalie was nice at times, but she was a little strict. I stopped training with her in 2011, because my grandpa couldn't keep driving all the way to Palos Verdes. When he told me that, I switched from Palos Verdes Ice Chalet to Skating Edge Ice Arena in Harbor City/Lomita. It was such a great rink, but it got expensive and it felt different from where I used to skate at. So I went back to Palos Verdes Ice Chalet and saw Amanda for the first time in forever, it was fun seeing her again and working with her. I like to think of figure skating as a sensory sport. You can feel the cold air and touch the cold ice, hear the crowd cheering for you, and see everyone you have met. You can even touch other people's hearts. It is also considered an art at the same time, you can see how artistic a lot of skaters are and they often use facial expressions to tell a story. Even the costumes are done artistically. I believe anyone can learn to skate if they just try and put in the effort to learn. It's a beautiful yet challenging sport, but that's what makes it enjoyable to watch. I don't regret skating at all, I am happy to look back to the past to see how far I've come. It shows that I didn't give up, and I kept going no matter the situation.