It is never too late to try something new. Freshman Rita Ismayl wasn’t sure if she was going to tryout for cheerleading as an eighth grader, she feared getting cut from the team. She then realized she had nothing to lose so she tried out. Making the eighth grade team was exciting, but not as exciting as it was for Ismayl to find out she made the high school cheerleading team.

Since Ismayl never had the thought of being a cheerleader in her head until she had the opportunity to, she didn’t obtain as much skill as she could have if she was thinking about cheerleading at a younger age.

“I wasn’t very good at tumbling and wasn’t that flexible so I thought I wouldn’t be good enough. I don’t really seem like the stereotypical cheerleader,” Ismayl said.

She believed that since she didn’t acquire one of many skills you need as a cheerleader, she wouldn’t be as good as others who did acquire that skill. It takes a lot of time and dedication, but Ismayl was willing to give it her all to become the cheerleader she believed was successful. Being a cheerleader changed Rita as a person, she has become more confident in her skin.

“After having two amazing seasons with a team I grew fond of, I really like being a cheerleader. There’s been downs where things seemed tough at practice but it’s fun and it makes me happy. When I’m in a cheer uniform I actually feel more confident which can sound cheesy but I guess I feel prettier in a way,” Ismayl said.

Society has a way of shifting people’s opinions and it is a lot harder to be comfortable in your own skin because many people have one idea of “perfection” and if you don’t fit in that category you shouldn’t love yourself. Society has a really big effect on people and what they believe a woman should look like. Ismayl believes that she is more confident in herself when she’s in her uniform. No matter what, as long as you feel confident in yourself, you shouldn’t allow others opinions dictate how you view yourself. Not only does Ismayl help herself become better, she is always willing to help her teammates as well.

“Rita always tells us how much we can improve for competition; she also is very motivating when we get tired and stop working as hard as we usually do, she’s the first one to try to get us moving again,” freshman and teammate Natalie Guzman said.

Overall, Ismayl really loves what she does and that’s what keeps her going. If you love something, you’ll continue to grow with it and become better, that’s why Ismayl does what she does.