My two points
The cheap, over inflated basketballs made a clanging noise as they kissed the gym floor. I was sad and excited at the same time. It was gym unit for adults being held at the same dusty gym that I had played in ten years ago. Every seven years you have a new body after you have gradually replaced each cell. I was a whole other person.
The other girls tossed their balls carelessly in the direction of the backboard. I walked up to my old coach and said quietly into his ear, "Go easy on me. It's been a while." His eyes smiled at me as he handed me a ball. When my shot missed the hoop I immediately charged forward for the rebound. I jumped. I reached for the ball and suddenly I found myself in a gym transformed. The paint on the floor was fresh, the wax thick on the floor and the nets where white and new.
I pulled the rebound out of the air and held it close to my chest. Fiercely, I moved back and forth, elboes out to keep the other girls from getting the ball. Inside my memory Josie Tanner in her white and red uniform grabbed the ball and tugged but I wouldn't let go. Instead I guided the ball to the floor, moving while it bounced, and spun to face her. I faked to the left and took my shot. The most satisfying noise followed. I had broken the tie that would lead to our victory. The net sighed and I wanted to cry because as I moved farther away from the game and the colors of my memory faded I knew that I'd never come close to that feeling again.
The other girls tossed their balls carelessly in the direction of the backboard. I walked up to my old coach and said quietly into his ear, "Go easy on me. It's been a while." His eyes smiled at me as he handed me a ball. When my shot missed the hoop I immediately charged forward for the rebound. I jumped. I reached for the ball and suddenly I found myself in a gym transformed. The paint on the floor was fresh, the wax thick on the floor and the nets where white and new.
I pulled the rebound out of the air and held it close to my chest. Fiercely, I moved back and forth, elboes out to keep the other girls from getting the ball. Inside my memory Josie Tanner in her white and red uniform grabbed the ball and tugged but I wouldn't let go. Instead I guided the ball to the floor, moving while it bounced, and spun to face her. I faked to the left and took my shot. The most satisfying noise followed. I had broken the tie that would lead to our victory. The net sighed and I wanted to cry because as I moved farther away from the game and the colors of my memory faded I knew that I'd never come close to that feeling again.