Difficult Decision

A situation that I had to overcome by choosing a difficult decision was when I had to try out for the tennis team at Alameda High School. My friend and I had to try out for the last spot which was playing for singles number four. Knowing that I had to go against my friend made me really nervous because I wasn’t prepared nor thought that I had to play against my friend when there was many others that were trying out for the same spot as well. At that moment, I had to think fast on what to do because I only had five minutes of break then I had to start the match with her. Deciding my next move was a very tough decision but I go with an answer as soon as possible. I was left with two options to choose from; I either could lose to her so she can get the spot and we could still maintain our friendship, or I could win her but our friendship would probably end right there. Thinking about it got me even more nervous, which will make me play bad.

On the last minute, I came up with my decision. I decided that I would give it my best during the match and win the spot with my own ability. I chose this decision because I wanted the spot as much as her and I thought that we both should play our best especially since we’re friends. I know that if I just purposely lose to her so she can get the spot, she probably wouldn’t feel happy about it. My conscience guided me through this decision and I trusted it. So the game started and I kept my mind off of thinking about that and just gave it all my best.

The game started by Love all. I served first because my friend chose one side of the court. I won the first game because she missed my hit. So the scored was 15/Love. I kept serving until I missed her hit. The scored was 30/Love. I still need one more point to switch sides because the scored is an odd number. After that I got that point, we switch sides and it's her turn to serve it to me. We played it until whoever wins the game. I kept winning her so the scored was 4:0. After that, I served and she returned all the balls back to me. I missed some of them and she wins the game. The scored was 4:1. After for a while, I won the first set and we have to play a second set. On the second set, it was kind of interesting because we were trying our best. She got higher games than me. There are 6 games in one set and you have to win by two games. Then I told myself that I have to win in order to get that spot. So I tried really hard and catch up with her. We almost got tied but the scored was 6:4.

We both had great sportsmanship because in between breaks, we would tell each other to do our best and good luck. Our comments towards each other gave us both comfort and no worries about the results. After we finished our game, we shook hands. The result was that I beat her and I got the spot and she went up to me and congratulated me with a smile.

After the tryouts, my friend and I went to go get a bite and while we were walking, I told her that before the match began I got really nervous. She responded saying that I shouldn’t have got nervous because this world is all about competition. Without competition, people wouldn’t strive for the best. Also, without pressure, the best skills that a person has will not come out of themselves. I felt much relieved after what she had said to me. I also felt really happy that my conscience led me to pick the right decision. I told my friend that if the same situation happens between us again, we should promise each other we both will try our best and no matter what happens, nothing will affect our friendship. If we do go against each other and one of us won, then we shall congratulate them and face the fact that they deserved the spot with their own ability.