Ethan Sparks '25 Recruiting Profile

A Runner’s Intuition 

Saturday was here. The thumping of a bass drum and the strum of an electric guitar was my cue to wake up. An alarm that signified a special day of the week. It was race day. My body sprung out of bed and I pulled the sheets back into a tidy form. I grabbed the necessities for a cross-country meet: uniform, running shoes, and water bottle. Then I went through my morning routine and before long it was time to catch the bus. Everything is clear in my mind as I join my team and travel to the course. My focus is on the race ahead. 

The team arrives at our destination and ventures out to find a place for camp. Skip forward to about 15 minutes from race time and we unite to go through the same tradition that always precedes the start: dynamic stretches, strides, and a team huddle. Then the official rallies all the runners into a circle and gives the starting instructions. Looking around me are high school boys of all different types. Some are here to set records, and others are here with the goal of finishing. Regardless of differing physical attributes and the color of the jersey worn, all the racers here have accepted the challenge to run a 5K. Snapping back to the moment, I hear the official tell us good luck. Now we retreat behind the starting boxes to wait for a whistle. Upon this sound, we step up to the line. The starter lifts his flag in one hand and his gun in the other. Bang! The pistol is fired. The mob of runners surges forward, but suddenly I am isolated from the crowd and alone with my thoughts. From start to finish I must overcome the temporary pain and difficult emotions. During this brief time I face the biggest rival in life. Myself. Having the ability to push through struggle and challenge has shown me much of the person I am today. 

Importantly, what I have learned through sport has much more to do with life than just running. After consistently practicing day in and day out, I have gained determination, discipline, patience, and much more. Most of all the battle that I fight with myself to become stronger and faster has taught me empathy. Through struggle and challenge, I have developed a new clarity of the battle that others are going through, and with this clarity, I can now truly serve and guide others. 

So, I find myself surrounded again by a mob of runners, but these are not competitors. Instead, I am running alongside a younger generation of children. It’s a Sunday afternoon in Greenville Park. Runners of all ages and skill levels are gathered together for a program known as Healthy Kids Running Series. As each race rolls by, I see a set of children who are each given obstacles to overcome. Whether it's the littlest of children from ages 2-3 who race a 50-yard dash or the big kids in grades four through eight who run the mile, I see the ability to overcome each obstacle. 

By becoming more and more involved with the outer world including the people around me and the community that I am a part of, I have learned a lot more about an inner world of my own. This world is rooted in a passion for helping others. And so with each race on those Saturday mornings and helping with those races on Sundays I have come to realize that we all have to fight a battle. And now I see more clearly than ever that I want to help in these battles. Ultimately I want to expand my passion for helping others into a medical career.