Ode to the sports we love and the athletes who play them

By Maddie Darmstadt

There is a quiet comfort in knowing that when one season ends, there is always another to follow. But for Stonehill’s senior fall athletes, the end of this season also means the end of their athletic careers.  

For most college athletes, their sport was their first friend, first passion, and their first love. Saying goodbye is not only daunting but aches in a way that is difficult to put into words.  

To some, this finality may seem trivial, but to those of us who have been labeled “a jock” for more than half our lives, leaving the world of sports can feel like losing a portion of one’s identity.  

As a way to find my own closure, and to help other senior athletes find theirs, writing a thank you letter to the sport I love, seemed like a way to alleviate the sadness many of us are facing as we enter our lives as no longer athletic regular people. 

To the sport I love,  

You were introduced to me through watching my big sisters who were -- and continue to be – my heroes. All I wanted was to be just like them, and at the time that meant playing field hockey. What happened from there I will be forever grateful for. I, for the first time, understood what it meant to enjoy something for myself. I fell in love with the sport, I fell in love with playing, and I fell in love with the person I was able to be while playing. I was never the most confident kid unless I had a field hockey stick in my hand.  

Like a suit of armor, it somehow allowed me to be completely and wholeheartedly myself.

From the age of six, field hockey became one of the most important parts of my life. It wasn’t until high school though, that I realized that while I love field hockey, I love the aspects of team sports more, and once coming to Stonehill this feeling grew tenfold.  

When I think of females supporting other females, I’ll think of my team’s locker room share sessions or falling into each other after someone scored the game winning goal.  

When I think of healthy masculinity, I’ll think of the football boys hugging and laughing and calling each other “brothers”.  

I’ve seen loyalty flow between both soccer teams and camaraderie amongst the women’s and men’s basketball teams.  

Being an athlete has been one of my greatest privileges but knowing athletes has meant more to me than I can explain.  

As the fall season ends, and so many of us are being forced to say goodbye to the sports we love, I want to say thank you.  

Thank you to the sport that allowed me to find myself.  

Thank you for teaching me how to be a leader, how to ask for help, and how to believe in my ability to work hard and persevere.  

Thank you for the best friends I’ve ever known and more support than I know what to do with.  

I also want to say thank you to the athletes, on my team and off, who have shaped the person I am.  

Thank you for inspiring me to work harder, thank you for being passionate about sports in general - not just your own.  

Thank you to the female athletes who are breaking records and getting accolades reminding people we belong in sports and setting examples for the young girls looking up to you.  

Thank you to the injured athletes for being mentally strong enough to show people that sports impact us mentally and emotionally as well as physically. Without all of you, people might care about the athlete but forget about the person.  

As we enter the real world, I find comfort in the fact that being an “athlete” is a state of mind that we will continue to exemplify and should always be proud of.  

With the utmost gratitude, 

Darmy #12