One of Pomona College’s graduation requirements forces students to pass one physical education activity course during their first year here.
This really scared me before I got to Pomona. Other than marching band, which didn’t count as PE at my high school, I’d never taken sport in my life. I remember random people joining the tennis team at my high school, so I thought I’d try out a beginning class to knock off that requirement and to maintain my beautiful physique that I developed through marching band.
Tennis is nice. Being in a class of four students—one from Scripps, Harvey Mudd, and Claremont McKenna—really makes for an intimate class setting. I’ve gotten much individual assistance from the coach because of how bad I am, and I think that’s only possible in a class with so few people in it.
Also, I’m the only freshman there, and everyone else has had prior tennis experience.
Tennis, I admit, is basically the only class I look forward to attending. I was disappointed the one time our coach emailed the four of us to say that class was cancelled. Had this happened with any other class, I’d have been really happy.
Apparently, my backhand is very good, and that is about it. My forehand is all right, but I think my arm really must be weak: It hurts when I try to survive by hitting balls that speed straight at me. My serves are inconsistent and I hit them out a lot of the time, and when they do go in, they go to the most random places… but this seems to be to my advantage, because my peers say that they really can’t predict how to return them. Of course I tell them it’s all part of my genius strategies.
In doubles, when I’m returning a fast serve and I have to do a forehand, usually the ball barely goes over the net in my struggle to hit it as hard as I possibly can. My doubles partner usually tells me, “Good return!”
Little does he know that I am weak and I do not mean to make the ball do that slow thing.
I’m trying to get into a tennis class next semester to improve.
Who knew I’d like the sport?
Also, early during my time at Pomona, I got a fortune cookie that said “Participation in sports may lead you to a lucrative career. Lucky numbers 03 10 18 21 32 39.” I don’t think I’ll be a great tennis player like my cool spibling Samantha, but I’m probably going to take tennis all four years here, if my schedule permits.