Shawn Johnson.
This may be a little late, but I seriously want to applaude her and her whole family and community.
As I followed the olympics like I normally do, I try to find the cool stories. Like a person coming back from cancer or a 44 year old swimmer...I try to find things that will touch the hearts of others. This year, I didnt find so much of that in this olympics but what I found was a story that impressed me as a high school athlete.
Shawn Johnson lives in West Des Moine Iowa and attends a fairly prestigious high school, at Valley High School. She attends school for the average 6 to 7 hours most schools do and participates in class like any other kid would. But what happens after school is a brutal workout for 4 to 5 hours, then its home to do homework.
Think of your average day as a high school teen, you sit through a boring day of school for 6 hours, you then get out of school...watch some ESPN, play some video games and do some homework. And I can guarantee that most of you (if you still go to school) complain about how tired you are, and how life sucks because you are so busy.
Now try to put yourself in Shawn's shoes...or lack thereof at the gym. Instead of going home she goes to a gym where she works out non stop to be in shape to compete with other women who devote every second of their day to gymnastics. She then goes home to do the average of 2 to 3 hours of homework a high school teen does.
Imagine doing that every day, every year since you were 5 or so...unbelievable.
She truly is a marvel, the 4 foot 9 high schooler can rise above any challenge presented to her, even ones grown women and men cannot accomplism.
Being a high school athlete myself, who prides himself on working out everyday, I can truly appreciate what she is showing the world about kids work ethic today...but not only that, but our countries work ethic. We are a country built on hard work, and back breaking labor (I dont want to get too political), and Shawn is the epitome of what we have stood for, for hundreds of years.
Shawn should be an idle for any high school athlete or scholar. Her ability to balance an overloaded schedule with her personal life and a modeling career is amazing. And anyone, from any country, should appreciate what she has sacraficed to get there.
Alison Preston
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