Personal Narrative: How Running Has Changed My Life

Wind absorbing through my chest, heat running through my veins, the adrenaline rush. I step up to the line, ready to conquer the unknown, and every noise, even the sound of heat hitting the telephone poles, goes to a halt. All I can hear is the beating of my own heart, uncertain of what is to come. Then, out of nowhere, there is a forceful stampede of athletes, all having the same goal of not getting trampled. Brown smoke is arising from the earth's surface, making me gasp for air. Once it calms down, I see the other runners and their pony tails bouncing side to side, making me go into a trance. Unlike any other thing that I have done before, the sport of running has pushed me to the limits and has made me work with others to achieve the title of running at the Cross Country State Championships, which our school had never done before.
Running was my stress reliever, my happy place. It allowed me to be who I wanted to be without having to think about the criticism that I got from others. I could see myself as someone who

At the end of practice, I would always go home with a bright red face and sweat pouring down my body, creating a wet ring on my shirt collar. However, we all wanted to make ourselves satisfied as well as our coach to make the most out of our practices and so we wouldn’t get more difficult workouts the next time because of lack of participation.
The first time that I won a race in a track meet made me feel like I accomplished something. I really liked that feeling of being successful on my own despite the criticism I had received about being successful. I felt like I could conquer anything and would never listen to what others would tell me. Likewise, I took the compliments and support that I got from my parents as a reward since I could look up to them and know that they too saw success in me and were proud of what I was achieving for myself and my