January – Hi! Bella here! This is my first year as a NASP® Student Contributor, and I’m excited to bring you my January article on what NASP® means to me.
What does NASP® mean to me? To me, it means a lot. NASP® is a sport and an experience, and for some people, archery can even be a career. It means different things to everyone—coaches, line judges, families, and archers alike.
First off, archery is a sport. I am a homeschooled student, and there are few sports I’m interested in playing, but I am extremely competitive. I joined archery on a whim, partly because my uncle has shot bows for most of his life. At first, I just shot for fun, but then our state tournament rolled around. I started to compete and became more serious about improving. When my mom became a coach, I started practicing at home. Now, archery is the only sport I truly like and enjoy.
Secondly, archery has helped me become more disciplined. While archery is fun and our team has many inside jokes, we still strive to be composed and maintain excellent line etiquette. At tournaments, we are often complimented on our good behavior. You can usually find me shooting at home when I’m not at practice. All of this takes discipline and commitment.
Next, archery, for me, means friendship. Since I started, I have made good friends and found friendly competition. We push each other to do better and stay positive. NASP® is cool because you can also meet and make friends with archers from other teams. While competitions are serious—and let’s admit it, stressful—they are also incredibly fun. Last year, I went to the Championships in Florida, and at the airport, I met a girl headed to the same event! It was so cool to chat about archery and our different states while waiting for our plane.
Another impact NASP® has had on me is helping me gain important leadership skills. While I still don’t enjoy public speaking or being asked to give examples or explanations, I have grown as a leader thanks to becoming a team captain. I love helping my teammates and new archers learn the Eleven Steps and tournament rules. Besides being a team captain, I am also a junior coach for our local archery club, where I get to teach younger kids the basics of archery. Coaching them has helped me develop new ways to explain things so they understand, which makes me a better team captain. I’ve even helped my little sister learn how to shoot!
Overall, NASP® is pretty important in my life. It has been an adventure from the beginning, but I think long after I’m done with these competitions, the relationships I’ve built and the lessons I’ve learned will stay with me. NASP® is more than a sport—it’s a community, and I am grateful to be a part of it.
