UNIT 7: SPORTS
My name‿ is‿ Iris. I played volleyball for ten years│ an(d) then became‿ a runner,│ and‿ I now believe the two develop characters that‿ are not merely differen(t) but complementary,│ an(d) that mos(t) people need both.
A team spor(t) teaches‿ interdependence. Your performance‿ is‿ inseparable from‿ eight‿ other players',│ so accountability is diffused‿ an(d) blame‿ is difficul(t) to attribute,│ which‿ is why a losing team so frequently destroys‿ itself‿ internally. The tactical dimension belongs to the coach,│ an(d) the player's psychology becomes‿ a matterma-der‿ of‿ accommodating somebody else's decisions,│ which‿ is‿ excellen(t) preparation for‿ employment‿ and‿ a convenien(t) place to hide.
Running‿ is the inverse:│ no coach‿ on the road,│ no colleague to carry the las(t) five kilometres,│ an(d) nobody to blame but yourself. The autonomy is clarifying precisely│ because‿ it‿ is‿ uncomfortable,│ an(d) the resilience‿ it develops‿ is not the collective kind. I now play volleyball‿ in the summer‿ and‿ am considerably more competitive there than‿ I ever was‿ alone. My advice to a young person would be to begin with‿ a team,│ because‿ interdependence‿ is the harder lesson,│ an(d) then discover│ who you are│ when nobody is watching.