EVERYONE has gone through a time in life that may have been truly difficult, where we feel stuck and like we have no control, which then causes us to question a lot of things. One of these moments for me was the other morning when I went to make my usual porridge but realised I had no milk, leading to the question of what I was now going to have for breakfast.

But in all seriousness whether it’s basketball, work, school or just life in general, we’ve all been there. Most of the time, to us, from an inward perspective, these times are just confusing and frustrating. But you can also look at it from the perspective that we go through these times so we can become equipped, trained and experienced for our future endeavours.

If you, as a 10-year-old, were given the tasks and challenges that you have today, how would you cope? Would you go into a basketball game against an Olympic team with no prior training or preparation? See, we have to go through certain trials to gain skill and knowledge first. And don’t get me wrong, this does take resilience; get knocked down seven times, stand up eight and never give up! But while doing this, you’ve got to persevere by relentlessly pursuing the best version of yourself (quote: Dev King) no matter your circumstances and be patient by knowing that the right doors will open to you at the right time.

Perseverance and patience. Two words that I’ve mentioned already, but they are also what I would use to describe my team, the women’s Lakeside Lightning. Another two words are Steph and Curry, but that’s a story for another day.

The 2015 season was a tough one, losing key players because of retirement, injuries and travelling and then going on to only win one game. It would’ve been so easy for all players and coaching staff to just call it quits and not bother trying anymore. But credit to all the unconditional support from everyone at Lakeside, we stuck together, on and off the court, and kept on fighting. Despite how the previous game may have gone, every team member continued to try and better their shooting and ball handling, make themselves stronger in the gym and strive to find the ultimate dad jokes on google (or maybe that one was just me).

The coaches also watched endless amounts of game tape and had many meetings to try and fix our mistakes. Everyone showed patience by displaying constant determination to improve, even though we weren’t necessarily seeing the results just yet. It could have been viewed as a ‘disappointing season’, but I choose to look at it as a season where we were given the opportunity to equip ourselves mentally and physically for the future.

It was always going to be hard to say goodbye to such valuable coaches, players and staff this season - ones that I feel have not only left their own legacies behind but also made a huge impact in many areas of my life. Going into something so new and different this season was daunting, but our head coach, Craig, and assistant coaches, Brett and Mark, have done an awesome job being patient with us while we learn new plays and adapt to this excitingly different take on the game, whilst still managing to find time to come up with unique nicknames for each of us that have nothing to do with our actual name.

As of present, we have gone from the very bottom of the ladder to a team that is in a competitive spot for finals. And it was not merely by chance that this is the case, it’s the result of a lot of hard work from everyone involved.

Hard work and I have a very love-hate relationship. I’m not going to sugar coat it and say that hard work is easy, because it’s not, at all... but I also love it because of the challenges it brings, and through these challenges I believe we can learn, grow and take ourselves to the next level. I also apply this philosophy when playing Super Mario (great game, by the way), it’s sometimes hard getting up each one of those blocks, but each block you take gets you more coins and further away from the mean mushroom guys on the ground.

Honestly though, I may have represented WA a number of times at nationals, but I’ve also been up at 5am to train in winter (when it’s still very dark and hard to leave such a cosy bed) for multiple months of preparation. I may have debuted in my first SBL game at the age 14, but I have also sat on the bench for countless amounts of games where all my thoughts are consumed with the hope that I’ll get on the court for even just a minute.

I may be in the Perth Lynx Academy, but I’ve also been told that I’m not good enough and never will be, by so many people in all areas of life. I’ve been through many occasions where I questioned why I’m even doing any of this but I do believe that without any of it, I would not be half the player or person I am today.

Basketball isn’t the ‘be all and end all’, but it is something that’s important to me. We as basketballers go through adversity on the court that can then be translated to off-the-court daily occurrences as well. Basically what I am saying is that even though there are those who look effortlessly successful (I’m not saying that this is necessarily me at all), I can guarantee that there was a lot of perseverance and patience involved behind the scenes. After all, how can flowers bloom without some rain?

So this is to everyone (if anyone) actually reading this, no matter who you are or what you’re currently doing in life, this mind-set can be applied in everything. If you’re going through a strenuous time, instead of not bothering anymore or giving up, be perseverant and patient. The doors you knock at will open at a time when you’re equipped, ready to take it on full steam ahead, and at the best of your ability.