My 22nd birthday was this past Wednesday, October 3rd, and it was my first birthday away from home. Back in the States, I was fortunate enough to go to college about 2 hours away from my house. I was always able to celebrate my birthday somehow and someway with my family. This was the first year I was truly away from home on my birthday.
At first, I wasn’t sure what to expect; I thought I would just get some of the normal birthday shout outs on social media and a couple facetime calls with my family. Throughout the day, I received a ton of birthday wishes from my friends at home and my friends here in Ireland. I also got a very nice birthday shout out from the Sport Changes Life social media account as well as a wonderful message from Deirdre, one of SCL’s founders. This was where the inspiration for the title came from!
After class my roommates and I went to coach a practice session at LIT. Then we planned to go to one of our friend’s house after for a small get together. Little to my knowledge they had something else planned for our night.
Drew and I walked up to our friend’s house and it seemed too quiet. I walked in first and was immediately welcomed with a flash of light and a loud “SURPRISE!” from about 20 people. They threw me a surprise party with balloons, cake and everything!! It was a terrific birthday gift and an unforgettable 22nd birthday party!
The next day when I woke up, I just kept thinking to myself, “Wow, they really did not have to do all of that for me!” Just remember, at this point, I have only known my roommates Drew and Taylor for basically a month and the rest of our friends in Ireland for less than that. They all went above and beyond any birthday expectations I might have had. I feel so lucky to have such great people in my life!
So, I just want to take the time to thank everyone who sent me birthday wishes and everyone who made my first Irish birthday one I will always remember! Lastly, I want to thank Sport Changes Life again for giving me this once in a lifetime opportunity! I have been lucky enough to have already met a ton of remarkable people. With confidence, I can say I have the best roommates and friends here in Ireland!
