Volleyball lasts a season, people…a lifetime.

One of my favorite things to do on a flight is to queue up a country playlist and scroll through all the pictures on my phone. I thought I would’ve outgrown that phase by now, but it still brings me so much joy. It’s like watching a timeline of your life in photos! And I don’t believe I’m the only one who does this; you know who you are! 

We all have nostalgic moments like these. We’ve seen thousands of the same pictures on our phones, but we keep crawling back to view them just one more time! But Why? Yes, boredom to a certain degree, but what truly captivates us about these photos?

We LOVE to capture life’s biggest moments like a graduation, a wedding, or even a baby’s first smile. But I ask myself, as an athlete my whole life, what about us? What kind of moments do we remember and like to scroll back to and re-live? Some athletes will think about when they made that last shot before the buzzer to send their team to the state championships. Others will remember hitting a home run and seeing their team screaming as they rounded 3rd base! Some remember the road trips or just loved being with their teammates and the bantering in the training rooms! Everyone has different memories that stick out to them, but one thing is for sure: they all revolve around people. When I look back at photos of my career thus far, I am utterly amazed at the people I’ve had the pleasure to meet along the way.

This talk takes me back to the start of my freshman year of college at Loyola Marymount University in 2014. During this time of my life, like many athletes, I had big dreams for myself. And as a student-athlete… sorry, athlete-student, I had my horse blinders strapped on and my mind was set on volleyball. It was all gas, no breaks. After starting on the indoor team in the Fall of 2014 and finishing my first beach season in 2015, I looked back on the year, and I got every accolade I could’ve dreamed of… from AVCA Pacific South Region Freshman of the Year to WCC All-Freshman Team Selection to AVCA All-American Honorable Mention. 

It wasn’t a bad start to my career, but I remember as I was packing up to go home that summer, I distinctly remember feeling quite lonely. I realized I had forgotten something big. I invested so much into my sport that I overlooked the same importance of investing in the people who supported and surrounded me daily. On top of that, throughout the season, I stopped reaching out to my high school friends, making coming home much harder. It really hit me that no matter how high you climb the mountain, no matter how high the ladder of success you get, the view isn’t as great if you can’t share it with others. Right? Whenever I see something beautiful like a sunset or a clear starry night, I want to share that moment with somebody by my side. Or whenever I made a cool trick shot or got a B- on a school test… which was good for me… I wanted to tell people about it!! I have discovered that whatever the moment, big, small, or beautiful, it is only as good as the company you share it with.

After leaving my freshman year for summer, I made a pact with myself that no matter what comes of my career, I wanted to bring as many people along with me as possible on this volleyball journey. Looking at it today, that surely is one of the best pacts I’ve ever made with myself. Nine years later, God has shown me that there’s more joy to sport when you share it with others, arms wide open. 

And playing for the PVF’s Grand Rapids RISE team here in Michigan has truly stolen my heart. I had no idea what I was getting into when signing here, but there is something special brewing here in West Michigan.

From the friendly and welcoming people to the slower pace of life, everything about this city just feels right to me. I remember the first time I walked into Meijer grocery store and was greeted, almost blissfully bombarded by three people with big smiles on their faces. It blew me away. This is a city where there’s a Bible study going on in every Panera bread, and every coffee shop makes you feel like family, especially Brody Be’s and their wonderful employees! I can always count on a fan encounter at the Olive Garden, and the people at Subway are some of the nicest I’ve ever met; you should definitely pay them a visit on 28th Street! You’ll know exactly what I’m talking about!

All that to say, the community here is something special. There is a sense of togetherness and investment in each other that is hard to find elsewhere. I may have been told I would die from the cold, but the warmth of the people here more than makes up for it. Overall, I and the collective RiSE team are so grateful to be planted and growing roots in this beautiful community.

And one thing I’ve LOVED more than anything is getting to play in front of family and friends from all seasons of life. 

As I’ve scrolled back through my recent photo memories over these past few weeks, it isn’t the wins or losses, the monster blocks, or the pancakes that I was hurrying back to view again… it’s to look back at all the people from the past and present seasons of my life who have shown up to support and cheer my team and me on.

Whether friends from beach volleyball, church friends, past high school and college teammates, or old coaches, it’s been a joy this season to play in front of them all! For some, it’s been years since they’ve seen me play live!

The one group of people I can’t forget to mention is my family. They still get just as nervous watching a game as they did in my high school days; I don’t think that will ever change! My newest title, “Auntie Sawah,” has brought a new type of meaning to my life and this game. “Mister Beau” will never remember a thing about these games, but these memories will bring tears to my eyes every time I scroll back to photos like this in the future.

Win or lose, the game ends, and I know whether I have the poopiest game or the best game of my life, these people love me just the same.

Hopefully, this can remind us all that volleyball on the court lasts a season, but the people last a lifetime. As we go through our seasons, it’s so easy to focus on ourselves, what to improve on, and what the next goal is that we’re going to set for ourselves; I am for sure guilty of that! It’s how us athletes have gotten as far as we have! But if you have a second, put yourself at the end of your season or the end of your career and then ask yourself:

Did I make it all about me? In whom did I invest? As I climb this mountain of life, of success in my career, who am I sharing the view with along the way? All I know is the view is better when shared with GOOD PEOPLE.