Splash!

Elyse Shouldis dives into the water, her future, and her goals. A diligent student, Shouldis can balance the hours and hours of hard work in and out of the pool.

As a junior in at Kinnelon High School, Shouldis is used to the strenuous work. Ever since the age of three, the pool has been a place for her to put all of her hard work to use.

“The hard work definitely pays off, and the lessons I learned will definitely lead me through college,” said Shouldis.

Shouldis spends about five hours of her day in the pool. Over this time span, many different strokes, dives, and techniques are practiced. Perfection is impossible, but for Shouldis, she takes away two very important lessons about consistency and perseverance.

Like any sport, Shouldis experiences challenges in the pool. “One word to describe swimming would have to be hard; the hours are really draining and over time,” said Shouldis.

Swimming is one that requires many hours of work to succeed.  These long hours often take away valuable study time that leads many people to quit their favorite sport. As a 17-year-old, this is the time when many athletes decide to either pursue deeper education or test their athletic ability at a higher level.

However, Shouldis is still on the ropes. Swimming has such a close place in her heart that the decision will be much harder than usual decisions. “If I were to quit, I feel like all of the hard work would have gone to waste, and I don’t want that to happen,” said Shouldis. Perseverance has taught her to fight through any struggles that come her way.

“I am used to the long hours, but it is still very hard to manage,” said Shouldis. Another valuable life lesson learned is time management. There are often times where one would have to be very good at time management. Hours on top of hours are spent in the pool, and every minute for her is valuable. After these long hours, Shouldis is prepared for the life ahead of her.