Just Keep Skiing

Summertime is full of fun, to say the least. For me, it was the time spent at the lake that made my summers. I enjoy every part of the warm days at my grandparents' lakehouse, whether that means swimming, kayaking, fishing, tubing, skiing or just going for a plain old pontoon ride. 

I really only wanted to swim when I was younger, but then I overcame my fear of the big tall raft. I enjoyed playing on the raft and then eventually got over being scared of going tubing behind the speedboat. At this point, I basically had done everything I felt I needed to on the water. It turns out I still hadn’t gotten the hang of waterskiing. Now I had attempted on several occasions to get up skiing but never had accomplished it, I failed again and again and again. I finally, after numerous tries, succeeded and got up skiing. I had achieved the goal and overcame the challenge, but I didn’t really like skiing. So I decided that since I had done it a couple of times I could say that I could ski and go back to swimming and tubing. Of course, as my parents usually do, my parents made me get back out there and ski. I remember telling my mom that I didn’t even like skiing and that it was no fun at all, and wondering why I couldn't stick with nearly flying a tube 5 feet in the air as the main thing I did on the lake. My mom responded, “If you keep at it you’ll probably end up liking skiing more than tubing”. Let’s just say that moms are always right and after much perseverance and improving my skills, I now enjoy skiing more, but not by much.

I say this all to make the point that sometimes we will try things in life that we don’t like and oftentimes we fall into the trap of saying to ourselves “Well I tried it but I didn’t like so I don’t need to do it anymore”, even when if we just give it another shot or keep at it there is a chance that we could really enjoy it. As the seasons change and summer closes, keep an open mind when it comes to new things, whether that be a school club, sport, or FFA contest, because even if you don’t enjoy it at first, it may be like water skiing for me, and you may end up liking it.

Just keep Skiing,

Ethan Wolheter

Indiana FFA State President

Life is a Highway

Cars, in my opinion, is one of the best movies ever. This movie describes my journey in FFA almost perfectly. Lightning McQueen is overconfident at first. You can especially see this during the first race of the film. Lightning McQueen had such a lead, but his overconfidence led to him tying the race instead of winning. I had the same mindset going into district officer interviews, overconfidence. Just like Lightning, I was disappointed in the result, as I had not been slated as a district officer. Now think about Lightning and how he got another setback in terms of having to stay in Radiator Springs. Instead of enjoying his time in Radiator Springs, all he could think about was getting out. I, just like Lightning, had another setback. This setback came at the 94th Indiana FFA State Convention, I wanted to become the Section III Director. I was dead set on being elected, just like Lightning was dead set on getting to his next race. When I didn't get elected, I was disappointed. I did not enjoy my time at the convention and see the support I had around me. Lightning’s mentor got him out of his rut just as my mentor, Mr. Dunn, helped me through the year. I spent my entire senior year feeling like an underdog, as I wasn't enough, just like how Lightning, as a rookie, would have been seen as an underdog against veterans like The King and Chick Hicks. In the final race of the film, Lightning might not win, but it shows that he is there to stay. In between the events of Cars and Cars 2, Lightning wins 4 Piston Cups. This was his victory and it to me can be compared to my victory of being elected as a state officer. Just like how Lightning’s journey was like a highway, with straightaways, curves, and turns, so was my journey in FFA. So if you ever feel like the underdog, just know that no matter what setbacks you experience, you can overcome them and still achieve your goals. Kachow, Garrett Bolin Indiana FFA State Sentinel