Superstar
Superstar
“Yeah yeah I’m ready for the finals coming up.”
“You already know Ima hoop.”
“Shoot, Ima try to get drafted to the Lakers with my man Lebron.”
“Alright, see Y'all later.”
I’m the best basketball player in my grade, on the East Coast. If anyone tries to 1v1 me… they’re getting dropped. Not even my friends can stick me. My friends are great though. They’ve been supporting in my many years of hoopen’. They’ve been by my side every step of the way and I trust them to the end. And I hardly keep secrets from them. I’ve only kept one secret from them and it’s a secret that ruined my reputation as the best. It’s really funny how I thought I was going somewhere. I thought I could provide for my mom and my brother. And I don’t know, maybe buy them a house in one of those rich white people neighborhood. It’s kinda funny how salty I was feeling when I got the news from the doctor. I was all like, “I’m the best, I’m going to be in the NBA and be an All-Star.” But then I started to have major heart pains whenever I started playing in games and scrimmages.
My dream was shot down in a matter of 3 words. “You have carditis.”
Apparently, that’s when you have inflammation in your heart. At first, when I heard this I was like, “Oh that stinks.” With very little worry. And so this man just kept on rambling and rambling about the conditions until finally, he said the words that I still hear when I sleep. “You most likely will not ever have a career in any sport, because at any moment, you could drop dead.”
Now when he said this... I…I almost punched him. Does he not know who I am??? I’m Sharod Christopher Smith-Jackson III, and I am going to be the best basketball player in the world!
My mother kept trying to say that it was going to be alright and how I didn’t have to be a basketball player to make her proud. I knew she was right but I didn’t want to admit it. And I for sho, can’t tell my friends. When they find out I can’t play ball, how will they react? I know it’s kinda sad but it’s one of the one things that we have in common. And now what I am supposed to now. Be a computer nerd? I don’t think so. This heart condition is my life, now, but so is basketball. I don’t want that to change. But it was already too late. My “wonderful” mother signed me up for a computer programming club. Mom really drove me all the way there just to make sure I went. I stepped up to the door and went in. I waited a couple seconds and peeked out the door but she was still there. So I gave up and went inside. Now to my friends, I had a reputation as a good basketball player but I didn’t realize I had a reputation to everyone else because when I walked in everyone stared at me like I came from Mars. And I as soon as I sit down they all kinda lean away and I hear a few scoots from chairs, as they try to get a little farther away from me. I could tell they weren’t fond about a “jock” going into their computer lab. The teacher, Mr. Matthews, came over and explained all about computer programming and what it can be used for. It was super boring at first. I mean how could it be compared to basketball. But as I looked around the room, I saw how cool it was. There were robots moving, and video games being made, and for the first time in a while… I smiled. This was something I could do. So when I got home I did my research and learned by myself the different coding languages. I finally told my “friends” about my condition and computer programming and they didn’t say much. So now I am completely focused on computer programming and I am top of my class. And that’s why I would really appreciate if you gave me this opportunity to show you what I can do for this company because my mom was right...I don’t need to be a superstar.
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