Caylee Clay

ERWC Per.2

Mrs. Scharf

Senior Exit Project - Integrity

My life is much like the sport of pole vault and all the components that go into it in

a way. In pole vault you have to work for and learn from experience and that's how the

structure of my life is. I have become the person I am today because of what I have

learned from past experiences. I learned from experience to never lie to my parents. One

time I lied about where I was going and who I was with and something really dangerous

almost happened. During pole vault you have to slowly progress and if you start out

trying for the top height you can fall and hurt yourself. That's why you learn from

experience and take it slow in the beginning. The structure of one's life is made by

experiences much like learning how to pole vault. The style of pole vault is a personal

but team sport when competing against other schools. Much like my life, I need my

friends and family to help me along the way. I was having a rough time after a breakup

over summer and I didn’t want to go out and socialize with anyone. My friends helped

me get out of the house and be happy again. This is like pole vault because we have to

all perform well in order to beat the other schools. You need a team in life much like you

need a team in pole vault to succeed. Without cohesion and working together you can't

accomplish the most you can. When working together in anything it makes me feel more

confident because I know I’m not doing it alone which in the end makes succeeding

easier. Competing in a sport alone is very challenging and you can get in your own head.

In pole vault it is a single person sport but the team is what motivates me to do good

because I know they all want me to succeed. So with all the team working together to
help everyone get better it makes it easier to succeed. My friends and I ran for

presidency and we ended up winning because of all the work we put in together. When

being together as a team while competing it makes me feel more confident. This is like

having friends and family around in my life and how they make life easier. In order to get

good and consistent at pole vault you have to train and get strong. Much like life

because in order to face obstacles you need to be strong. I had a volleyball tournament

in vegas and on the way down there I found out my dog had died. Instead of letting it get

to me I remained strong and played that weekend the best I could for my team. This is

like pole vault because in order for me to reach new heights I had to train my body and

get stronger. Strength helps me get through life and succeed much like it does when

pole vaulting. You have to be able to withstand the challenges of life and make it through

because there is a long life ahead of you and that takes durability. In pole vault you

have to compete through multiple rounds so you have to be able to keep up your skill. I

was getting really stressed out and overwhelmed right before christmas break because

of college applications and homework piling up that it became easy for me to fall into a

habit of just not doing anything at all. I woke myself up and pushed through it all because

I know it is for my future and I ended up getting everything done. This is like pole vault

because when you’re having an off day you have to keep trying and doing your best so

you can keep competing. Pushing through a pole vault competition is much like pushing

through the challenges of life. The direction of my life, much like pole vault, is set by

what I do to get there. This all depends on the work and time I put into whatever I am

doing. Training every day and attending practices sets me up for a positive direction.

With the work I put into pole vault I progressed. This is like my life because junior year I

worked my butt off to get all A’s, start a club, run for presidency, and other things so I

could look good on my college transcripts. Doing that put me in a good direction for my
future. The direction of my life all has to do with how much work I put into it much like

progressing in pole vault.