Sonya Elliott – Page 16 – Back on the Court

PEACELOVEBASKETBALL: Can I Play? Dreaming In The Wave Of Title IX

The recent loss of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has left me heartbroken. I didn’t have a personal connection to her, but what I know of her, I love, and I am grateful for how she fought for women’s rights and equal rights.

It is because of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (and many other strong women before my time), that I have the right to vote, that I have access to birth control, that I was able to get a credit card before I was married and that, if I want, I can buy a house without my husband’s signature, to name a few.

And of course there’s Title IX (which bans sex discrimination and sexual harassment in federally subsidized educational programs, including athletics). This 1972 Education Amendment is what opened up doors for me to play the sport I love at the next level and get a better education, and for that I am grateful. Had I been in school a few years earlier, before Title IX, things may have been different.

Can I Play? Dreaming In The Wave Of Title IX is an article I published several years ago about how lucky I was to grow up after Title IX was enacted, and how it allowed me to pursue my dream of playing college basketball.

Can I Play? Dreaming In The Wave of Title IX by Sonya Elliott

“Mom, I want to play basketball,” I said as I watched the boys move up and down the court, dribbling around each other in an effort to get to the hoop. I was seven at the time.

My mom peered at me through the bottom of her glasses and explained, “They don’t have basketball for girls your age, Sonya.” But when I narrowed my eyes and huffed, she gave me an exaggerated wink and said, “That doesn’t mean […]

PEN TO PAPER: Wants & Needs

There’s a feeling in my soul right now that has inspired me to blog again. Maybe I’m working through anger and frustration about what is happening in the world with the pandemic, the coming election and the onset of fires across the west coast. Or perhaps it’s simply the fact that I’m at home a lot these days. Whatever the case, I’m finally doing more writing. And I like it.

I haven’t felt such a strong urge to write for a while. Not like this. Other than my Thursday’s with Jenny, my writing time has been more of a grind. Sonya, you should work on your book. Sonya you should blog. I want to finish my book, so I sit down and write and rewrite and write some more, and I’m always glad that I do, but it’s been hard.

I love the feeling that I have right now, where I can’t think of much else, so I’m taking advantage of the fire in my belly and getting to work. It’s a little bit of a problem because it’s been keeping me up at night as my mind whirls with ideas, but honestly, I prefer it this way. The urge to write is always inside me, it’s just hidden at times, but when it surfaces like this, it reminds me that not only do I want to write, I need to write.

Set your goals and work like a turtle if you need to, in order to reach those goals, and when you feel the urge to write, take advantage of every minute and write on!

WRITING PROMPT #1: What are your wants & needs? Or simply put WANTS & NEEDS at the top of a blank page and start writing and see […]

LIFE INSPIRED FITNESS: Tracking Your Success

At the start of the pandemic, my husband, son and I, set goals to stay in shape and do core workouts daily, so I made a chart so that we could track what we did. It worked. At least for me (the boys didn’t keep up with the chart even when they were working out). When my chart ran out, however, so did my consistent workout schedule.

I’m pretty good at letting life inspire me to get some workouts in and stay in shape, but part of staying healthy for me these days includes working on my flexibility and mind, so I’m trying to include yoga and meditation. I even added those categories to my chart, which is where the chart was really helping me.

When I was young I was always busy, playing basketball and running around. I’m still busy, just not as busy, and for some reason for me it’s easy to put other tasks ahead of yoga and meditation. So I’m doing whatever it takes to create a new habit. I’ve tried simply jotting a note on the calendar or in my daytimer, but I don’t use those on a daily basis these days, so I went for a chart again. My daughter has a bullet journal where she tracks all sorts of things including workouts. And you can download all kinds of apps that can help you track or log your workouts like Fitocracy and the Simple Workout Log. My husband loves to track his bike rides on Strava.

The important thing to remember is your tracking system doesn’t have to be fancy; it just has to work for you. For me, the more basic, the better. Try charting your workouts in a way that you enjoy and feel your body and mind grow stronger.

LET’S GET SERIOUS

I’m not one to talk politics, but because our nation’s response to the worldwide pandemic is affecting our nation’s health, I can’t help myself. I’ve been tweeting my views and yes, now, because I care about my friends, family and my community, I’m publishing this blog, one that took me a month to edit while I worked to soothe the fire that’s been burning in my blood. I am frustrated and angry, not only because we are in a global pandemic, but because the United States of America hasn’t had a consistent, united response to COVID-19, which has made things even worse.

There are a lot of confusing facts out there, but one fact that can’t be denied is that the United States is doing a terrible job with controlling the spread of the virus. And as the virus continues to spread across the nation, hundreds of thousands of people are dying. As of today, September 4^th, 2020, over 187,000 Americans have died. Imagine if one of those deaths were your mother, your father, your sister, your brother, or your best friend.

My message today is please, for your health, the health of your friends and family, and the health of our nation as a whole, please, please, social distance and wear a mask. It’s not that difficult, and it’s exactly what other nations are doing so that they can live a new normal life.

The fact that the president of the United States doesn’t scream this message just baffles me. It’s like we are living in a dystopian world here in the USA. I don’t understand Trump’s response to COVID-19 (or lack there of), just like I don’t understand how it’s okay for him, the president of the United States, to bully-tweet and lie, to encourage white supremacy, to attack honored Veterans, […]