Beier Chen, Grade 12 Metal Class, Shenzhen Academy of International Education Instructed by Mercy Ye As a student, I got in touch with sailing by joining our school’s sailing team in 2017. Initially, I thought I could handle the boat much better than the classmates who earlier had joined the team. However, I was totally wrong. When I first got on the sail-boat with my teammates, I was excited but a bit scared. As we took turns steering the boat, it kept shaking left and right, without moving forward. At that moment, I felt so powerless. This experience really humbled me, and I understood that mastering sailing was not easy. During the first year, I really wanted to give up. My coach yelled at me during the training for various reasons: losing focus, reacting too slowly, and giving instructions in a volume too low. At that time, I thought he was criticizing me harshly, and I took it personally. While I was upset with the coach, my mother influenced me positively. She has been a role model for me since I was a child. I knew that her success did not come easily. She worked extremely hard to start her own business, and only achieved success after many twists and turns. Because she was a highly self-disciplined person, she had the same expectation for me. I would always remember what she told me: “If you have decided to do something, stick to it.” As she said that, the line “the darkest hour is nearest the dawn” lingered in my heart. Eventually, I reconciled with the coach. I realized that if I couldn’t stay focused or react in time, we could hit another boat or get entangled with some fishing net. After I attended competitions, I came to understand the coach even more — he didn’t mean to criticize me when he raised his voice. Talking in a louder voice is necessary while sailing because sailors could hardly hear each other when the wind is strong. When I got in his position, I suddenly empathized with him. As I persisted in the sport, I grew to focus on feeling the wind and sensing the direction. If the wind blew directly toward our boat, it moved very fast. However, if sailors adjust the degree of the sail inadequately, the boat advanced slowly. Gradually, I found enjoyment in sailing with different winds. Moreover, I enjoyed the collaboration with my teammates. If we wanted the boat to go even faster, relying on the wind was not enough. We sailors needed to adjust the strings connected to the mainsail and jib together. When adjusted appropriately, the boat could speed up. I was fortunate that I did not give up, so I got to taste the sweet fruits of perseverance. After one year of training, my teammates and I attended the China Cup International Regatta, one of the biggest sailing competitions in Shenzhen. Around 10 teams attended the youth competition; most of the teenagers came from schools in coastal cities, such as Shenzhen and Guangzhou. We competed in the Qixing Bay for two days. Each day, we stayed on the boat from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and ate lunch on the boat. When the competition started, we had to take several rounds between the starting line and the finish line. As a junior sailing team, we achieved third place. Despite the prize we earned, the judges told us that we could still better our performance in terms of reaction and collaboration. After the competition, we trained even harder and our abilities were enhanced — every time when the captain asked us to change the direction, we could operate the strings quicker. I had so much joy over the improvement. Humility, empathy, perseverance, and joy — I did not expect to gain so much from sailing. Furthermore, I found an analogy between sailing the boat and living my life — the stronger the wind blows, the faster the boat moves. So shall my strength equal my days. | 