Editor's note: This is a series on NNUSports.com titled "Letter to My Freshman Self." It is based off of The Players' Tribune's "Letter to My Younger Self" series. We will publish these once a month or so throughout the school year.

Dear Freshman Year Jose,
 
You are about to embark on a very unconventional college experience. Brace yourself for all that comes with going down the road less traveled. This journey will take you from your hometown of Las Vegas to a small community college in Prescott, Arizona called Yavapai College. As if that's not bizarre enough, you'll end up in a private school in Nampa, Idaho.
 
As you're probably starting to realize, this journey will be nothing like you expected it to be but once you're done with it, you wouldn't want to have changed a single thing about it.
 
This whole unorthodox journey is to attain one thing, a higher education through playing college soccer. You might not know it yet but the life of a student athlete is strenuous and at times seems repetitive. Wake up, grab breakfast, go to class, head to training, supplemental workout, shower, grab some dinner, muster the little bit of energy you have left for schoolwork, then go to sleep. Repeat. Heads up, there'll be days where you'll feel tired, body is aching and all you want to do is lay in bed and drown in your sorrows.
 
One thing you're not allowed to do is lose sight of how blessed you are to be in the position you're in. Not everybody reaches the stature of 'college athlete' so take some pride in that. Enjoy, value and embrace every moment because soon enough, you'll be done with college soccer and have nothing to look back on but memories.
 
Oh the places you'll go because of this beautiful sport. You'll travel and live in cities that you never thought you would. See, meet and befriend people from all different kinds of backgrounds and upbringings. Oh but the agony, anger and tears that this sport will bring you, get ready kid. You'll experience the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. You'll struggle for playing time, battle through season-ending injuries and lose people along the way. There'll be days where you're about ready to give up on this journey. But Jose you won't do that. Your parents didn't go through all that they did for you to just give up so easily.
 
Find beauty in the struggle and embrace the journey you've set out on. Work your tail off every single day and you'll find yourself in the position that you're in today. You'll go from the high school senior who didn't get a single offer to play college soccer to a three-year captain of NNU men's soccer team. All a testament of faith, hard work and perseverance. Refer to this verse whenever you encounter a roadblock along your journey and need something to fuel your fire: "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance" (James 1:2-3, NIV).
 
You will undergo a great transformation as a result of choosing the road less traveled, so let me offer you some tips to help along the way.
 
Focus on what you can control. Your attitude, effort and preparation are all things you're in control of. You can't control your coach's decisions but you can definitely make his decision to start you easier by focusing on your attitude, effort and preparation.
 
Find comfort in discomfort. The beauty of stepping out of your comfort zone is that it leads to growth. Take risks. Swim upstream. As the saying goes, greatness lies on the other side of fear; so take that leap of faith in order to become the best version of yourself.
 
Be absorbed in the moment. Every second of every practice matters; as you'll come to find out, what happens within a few seconds of a game will turn out to be the difference between a win or a loss. Live in the moment and no matter how repetitious a task may seem, find joy and beauty in every single thing that you do.
 
Wishing you the best,
Senior Year Jose