I was a competitive dancer for 11 years, I started dancing when I was two years old. Overall, I danced for 16 years. I quit the dance studio life when I was 17 when I was a Junior in High School. It was too much for me at that point in my life. I had felt like I had no social life because of how committed I was to this sport. I felt worn and left out with life. Through hours and hours of practicing with constant sweat and tears. It wasn't easy. The amount of pressure I put on myself for not being good enough, not pretty enough, my body wasn't like her body, continuous comparing. To get myself out of this headspace, I had to be my own coach. As I would look at myself in the mirror with these bright, big diamond earrings, I would reassure myself that I am good enough for myself. These earrings were worn every single year. Through dance competitions, recitals, and events. Over and over again. If you had lost these earrings, it was the end of the world. You needed these earrings to make the costume perfect for each dance you were in. It would mess up the whole meaning of the dance that it was going to portray to the audience. It would let down your teammates. We would all have to take them off if one dancer forgot or lost their jewelry. The number of emotions raised through this sport made me learn about how important team spirit is. Dance is all about confirmation.