Aliyah’s Experience

Hi! I played my last game in Terville, France yesterday and will be home at the beginning of April. So, let’s talk about my experience.
First, I’m so blessed and grateful to say that my job is playing volleyball. Ever since I started playing volleyball, I’ve always tried to get to the next level. I first started by learning the basics of volleyball (shoutout to Morgan McGovern for being the first coach to make an impact), to playing many years of club and high school, and then 5 years at K-State.
A lot of people know my story at Kansas State wasn’t easy. There were a lot of ups and downs that life threw at me, and I questioned if I truly loved the sport. At the end of my career at K-State, I liked playing volleyball still, and I knew that if I didn’t take the chance to play professionally while I could, I might regret it when I’m older. It was more of a why-not? Let’s just see what happens, sort of deal I made with myself, and it’s been the best decision I’ve made.
To be completely honest, I wanted to stay in the States and play. I wanted to be close to my family and friends and try to make my life work where I was, but when the PVF draft day came around and my name wasn’t called, I sat in the camper with my mom in Kansas and cried. Even though I had this “whatever happens, happens” mindset, a little part of me wanted it to be easy. I wanted to have a great career playing volleyball, but I also wanted to be close to my family and friends. So when I didn’t get that call, it hurt because I knew that I had to choose that hard path.

So, this was the timeline:

• I played in my last college volleyball game November 30th.
• I got the offer to play in France December 12th.
• My visa appointment was on Christmas Eve.
• My visa came in on New Year’s Day.
• I landed in France January 5th.
• I played in my first professional volleyball game January 13th.

Here are some things I’ve learn about myself in 3 months living in France:
1.) I am stubbornly independent.
I truly like to do things on my own. But, when it comes to asking questions, sometimes I get nervous because what if it’s a dumb question? No, just ask the question, Aliyah, jeez. It shouldn’t be a challenge to start the dishwasher, just ask someone how to do it.
2.) I love a good hobby.
I really enjoy crocheting now. Some of you may know my mom is really good at crocheting and she’ll spend all day at her desk and crochet her projects. I remember when I tried to learn from her when I was living at home, I got turned off from it simply because I wasn’t good at it. But, when I came to France and tried again, I fell in love with the challenge and love creating. It’s special to me because it’s something I made. Also, I like building legos now, I think for some of the same reasons.
3.) I truly love being active.
I think the reason I’m good at my job (you know, playing volleyball) is that I love the things that make it hard. I love lifting weights and pushing my body to see how much it can take. I also love active recovery, stretching, icing my knees, going for walks, etc. I simply just love to move around and take care of my body.
4.) I can cook
It’s funny because when people ask me if I can cook, I want to tell them no because I couldn’t cook for the longest time (my parent and McDonald’s cooked for me so why would I need to know how to cook?). But now that I am adulting, I’ve figured out how to make a few things for myself and I do think that food tastes better when you put your heart and love into it. That could be debatable for some though.
5.) I’m becoming the person I want to be everyday.
The day I realized that I have to get to know myself in order to feel good with who I am and what I’m doing was the day life started to become easier. It’s hard not to see what other people are doing in their life and not question if you’re doing the right things in yours. But I figured out that it’s okay to get inspired by people, but when envy starts to rise, that’s when I have to look in the mirror to figure out what’s truly going on.

I’m not sure where I will be playing next, but I do know that I love where this career is taking me. If I can learn this much about myself in only 3 months, I can’t wait to see where I am after a full 9 month season. Sure, it will be hard, this career is hard. Everyday will be a battle to become the best at what I’m doing. I think John Cook said it best, “It’s better to burn out than to to fade out.” Everyday I will choose volleyball until it’s not what I choose anymore.