Picture this: it’s a typical cold February evening in Dublin. The chill in my bones has been warmed only by the adrenaline from watching Alyssia Liu bring home the gold to the soundtrack of PinkPantheress and Zara Larsons’ “Stateside.” I’m reclined on the couch in front of our flat’s finicky TV, which we have wrangled into working for the sole purpose of watching “The Blade Angeles” ( as the U.S. women’s figure skating trio is so affectionately called) glide across the ice in their captivating and signature style. While contemplating whether or not to dye my hair raccoon tail over a pint of Ben and Jerry’s a sudden, painful awareness of my recent lethargy washes over me. How is it that a girl my age, from my same state (shout out to the Golden State, West Coast best coast) is able to dominate the Olympics while I struggle to peel myself off the couch for a light jog?
Among feelings of inadequacy, I was overcome with a sudden desire to bring physical activity back into my routine. Much to my dismay, the walk from my flat to school and school to the pub was no longer fitting the bill. I opened my phone in despair as I melted further into the couch, and that’s when I saw it: an email from the Volleyball Society advertising their weekly skills session. With nothing to lose and in desperate need of a side quest, I signed up.
Coincidentally, a few days later, I discovered a few of my friends, some who had played for years and others who had never so much as touched a volleyball before, had been attending for a few weeks now, and had found it a gratifying outlet, both physically and socially. Comforted that the session accepted all skill (or lack thereof) levels, at 5 pm on a Friday, I walked right past the already teeming Pav and on to the Trinity Sports Centre.
Led by Trinity Volleyball team members, the session began with some light jogging, stretches, and casual chat amongst attendees. Once our blood was sufficiently pumping, we separated into partners of our choosing and began some light volleying. While some volleyed with precision and grace, denoting years of experience, others had a more trying time, and yet there was little judgment from the more advanced team members. I, for one, attempted to embody my 12-year-old self as I reverted back to a time where I dominated the middle school junior varsity volleyball court, but to little avail. The session progressed into a variety of drills led by society members covering hitting, setting, and bumping. I was pleasantly surprised to see that intervals of downtime during each drill encouraged conversation and impromptu bumping among friends and strangers alike. About an hour into the session, attendees were split into teams of four to compete in mock tournaments for the next hour. I could see myself improving throughout the evening, becoming bolder and somewhat more accurate with my bumps. Although playing a low-stakes, community-oriented game is a far cry from Olympic Women’s Figure Skating, it was exactly the level of activity that I hope to add to my weekly routine.
