Life is like a book.
Each chapter tells a different story, and every story impacts another one.
This became evident to me when I watched President Barack Obama’s address to the world, telling about the demise of Osama bin Laden.
The memories of the destruction caused by him on Sept. 11, 2001, are still fresh in my mind despite occurring nearly a decade ago.
Then after fighting two wars and spending billions trying to find him and guard against terrorism, he had been captured.
The chapter was finished. However, the book was not over and should not be closed.
The economic effects of bin Laden still resonate today, and now as a people, we must deal with those problems.
As I am set to graduate in May and finish writing my final chapter at Fort Hays State University, this theme is becoming even more apparent to me.
Our lives are full of chapters.
Fort Hays started its own chapter when it left the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference for the more competitive Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association in 2006.
As a freshman sports writer, I witnessed the early struggles of athletics in this new and top-notch conference.
I am not going to lie. It was ugly to watch at times. It seemed like Fort Hays would never be able to compete with the upper echelon of the MIAA.
The track and field team went from dominating the RMAC to struggling with the powerhouse teams in the MIAA, and for the most part, the Tiger athletic squads struggled to finish better than middle of the pack.
Even the men’s basketball team, which was one of the most well founded sports at Fort Hays when competing in the RMAC, struggled in the MIAA early, compiling an overall record of 32-26 over its first two years.
Five years have past since joining the MIAA, and Fort Hays is yet to win a season conference championship in any sport.
However, the future is not as bleak as I thought as an underclassman. I have just seen the early chapters. The story is still developing.
The Tigers are becoming more and more adjusted to this conference and are showing more and more that they can compete with the titans of the MIAA.
The men’s basketball team showcased this over the last two seasons.
The men’s basketball team nearly won two consecutive MIAA championships but fell short late in both seasons.
However, the players overcame that late-season adversity and rallied to win the conference tournament championship — the first-ever MIAA championship for Fort Hays — after defeating regular season champion No. 8 Missouri Southern State University 89-83.
Though they didn’t take home the regular season MIAA championship crown, the tournament championship is still noteworthy.
It shows Fort Hays has the capability to be a champion.
It won’t be easy. It will be a grind, and the Tigers will have to overcome trials and tribulations.
Though Fort Hays’ most successful sport, the men’s basketball team, didn’t reach the highest peak, it does not mean that no athletic squad ever will.
It was just another step towards the end of the chapter, and the climax of the story has yet to be written.
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