Is this the life I want?

The women's tennis tour--the WTA. (See the clip posted below.) All of the professional women's tennis players in there look and seem perfect, right? They play tennis, eat, sleep, train. Seems self-explanatory and simple. But, some feelings or emotions of theirs can turn this into a really hard process. Their feelings can change during the whole course during any given week on tour. 

By Eng T Tan (https://www.flickr.com/photos/engta/15591426415/) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Some of these women are incredible. They choose not to show some feelings because of what outsiders like us will think of them. Nervousness, sadness, fatigue, and so on. They are constantly put in a state where they can't have any imperfections. That is hard especially for a tennis player, who is expected to be on best performance on court and off court. It is difficult to control their own feelings sometimes. They are expected to do so much for the fan to enjoy. I don't think it should be that way. I want people to understand that they are human, too. And, they also make mistakes. They should not be expected to play just for the fan; but, to play for first for themselves and for the love of the game.

Despite the emotional roller coaster ride of being on the tour, these women choose to keep going because of that nice, warming feeling of the fast adrenaline in their veins. They play because of not only for the prize money to make a living as a professional, but also for the love of the game of tennis.

By Tatiana from Moscow, Russia (Simona Halep) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

​It is not easy to be a professional tennis player. There are a lot of sacrifices they have to make in order to be the best. It is not an easy task. They fight for their title on court, their appearance off court, and maintain good relation with tour admin and sponsors. They want to show that they are important and need to be respected, but they want us to like them, to support them through heavy times.

Yes, in the end, they play for us, the fan, and as well as themselves, they play for life. How they played and lived is meant to be heard! Do you want to be heard? Do you want this life as a touring professional?

I think it's fascinating. Why not?
​Karina Zaharieva