Present in San Diego

I can’t believe we’ve been in Little Rock for nearly two weeks already. I also can’t believe that in three short weeks (three weeks and two days, but who’s counting?) we will be playing in the first women’s rugby World Cup. In many ways, the days seem to blend together and drag on – I’ll blame the never ending supply of soggy green beans for that – but in other ways, it seems that my life is flashing before my eyes. I want to make sure that I savor every minute of it. I want to make sure that every moment is seared into my memory bank so that I can have a story to tell…someone. Many times we find ourselves hoping that a moment will arrive and we forget to enjoy the journey along the way. I want to make sure that I’m enjoying my journey, no matter what.

One of the motto’s of the team is to “be present”. Every day after a practice, our coach asks us where we are, just to make sure that we are, in fact, “present”. Presently, I’m sitting at Denver International Airport waiting to board a flight with my teammates to San Diego. In two days, we will take the pitch in our first match against China. Although this journey started in August for us, I see this weekend as the first step on the road to the World Cup. Regardless of how we perform, I want cherish every minute that I’m together with this wonderful group of women, both on and off the field.

–Ines Rodriguez