Team=Family

I really, really miss basketball.
No, I don't necessarily miss all of the conditioning and yelling that came along with it.
I really miss my team. We got so close by the end of the season, closer than a family. Hell, we told each other things that I haven't told anyone else. We farted around each other 24/7 (gross, yes. Funny, YES). And it was that feeling of happiness and acceptance around them that made me feel in place. At the beginning of the season, none of us really knew each other. I mean, me, Helen, and Kamari would just hangout together. But I remember after our first game, we all sat together and cheered on varsity. In the first 5 minutes, we were all talking so much and already making fun of each other. We went out to lunches and dinners together, had a team sleepover, and just spent as much time together as possible. I DEFINITELY believe that if we didn't have such great team chemistry that we wouldn't have gotten as far as we did. No matter how much Coach Wool got on our asses, we always bounced back and got our shit together. I remember one week of practice, Coach gave us the quote of the week. This one really has stuck with me:

Shit, when we all heard this we screamed it loud and proud. We knew that together we could do so much and go so far; and we did. I know I will never forget this season for my entire life. 

SQUADDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

I've been keeping a notebook with me for about 2 months. All I write in it is quotes that stick out to me. I've heard some amazing ones, but this one has touched another part of me.
"I have learned that if you are down, stay down. Don't get back on your fucking feet until you are prepared to stand. Don't get up until you have learned why you fell. Nine times out of ten, it is because you were weighing down on someone who could no longer hold you. You gave someone your power. You forgot about yourself. Let me tell you something- there is one person there for you. One person. It's the same person that wipes your shit and feeds you and cleans up your vomit after a drunken night. It's the same person who brushes your teeth and tends to your wounds and gets your crying ass out of the shower. The same one that tucks you into bed and cradles you in the night and fights off the darkness and embraces the light. It's you. It's always been you. Don't get off the fucking ground because you see someone you know or somebody you want to know, or somebody you can rely on. Wipe your fucking face and get up for you. Because you can. Because it's the least of what you owe yourself." -Anonymous