Well Hello, hello everyone! Yes, I am still alive
and running around this crazy world starting new journeys! I do apologize to
all of those who followed my adventure in Finland and were left to wonder what
had become of the Little Mixed Girl. After it was brought to my attention that I kind of left y'all hanging I figured I better do an update and what better time than on the eve of the 2014 VOLLEYBALL PRESEASON commencement?! No fear, I did not get eaten by a lynx or
drown during an ice swimming escapade. I simply got caught up in, well, life. So
sit back, grab something cool to drink and enjoy!
Spring Is Near!
As I sit here in the heat of August, which has
actually been rare lately, I can proudly say I survived a Finnish winter. In my
last entry I described the beauty of Finland and all the exciting winter
activities it has to offer. As the days got longer I was finally glad once the
sun stayed up past 4PM, which also meant the light at the end of the tunnel for
our regular season. We finished our season in a heartbreaking loss to OrPo
putting us in 3rd going into the post season. Since only the top two seeded teams
bypass the quarterfinals, our first team up was WoVo alllllll the way in
Lapland. In a 2-1 series victory we advanced to the semi-finals to play the top
seeded team, the team we had beat for the Suomi Cup but couldn't manage to
handle during the regular season: Salo. So I'm sure you could imagine my
annoyance, frustration, and hunger to FINALLY beat this team. Semi-final and
Final matches in the Finnish league are organized like the NBA, a 7 game series
but with matches only a few days apart. In the first match we managed to take a
set off of them but lost in four, a loss, which still bothers me to say
somewhat, sealed our fate for the remaining matches. After hosting the first
match at home we had to go to Salo twice, in their gym and in front of their
home crowed, for games 2 and 3 of the series. Despite our efforts we dropped
the two matches in 3 and ended at home with a season loss. To know my time with
these girls had come to an end hurt more than the loss. I played my ass off for
the team, was named team MVP 4 out of the 7 post-season matches and had nothing
left to give (I actually think I loss feeling in my left leg after POUNDING the
floor with my hip while trying to save a ball, anything to win right?). In true
Finnish fashion, we were able to conclude our season by a team dinner at
Amarillo's with plenty of margaritas and chocolate martini's then ended the
night at the good 'ol Fat Lady dancing the night away. The next few days, and
my last, were spent just enjoying life with new friends in a foreign country. I
am VERY proud to say I checked "learn how to drive a manual car" off
of my bucket list due to my best friend on the team. It was a scary experience
but one I'm very glad I was able to live through ;). We laughed, we cried, we spent
time in the sauna, had a girls day in Estonia and I even taught them how to
play beer pong (with long drink we stocked up on during our trip to Estonia).
They were days I never wanted to end and ones I'll never forget.
Whenever people ask me about my time in Finland I
just smile. I had the time of my life. I left a wide-eyed 23-year-old ready to
take on whatever was thrown at me and I did just that. I met unforgettable
people who I still keep in contact to this day and have developed such a love
and appreciation for all that Europe has to offer. My desire to travel stems
from my passion for people and love of culture. To know how much World is still
out there for me to discover keeps my wheels turning. Thank you to everyone who
made Finland my home, without you I would have returned a stupid American.
<3 Suomi Forever.
[If you want to see more pictures from my time in
Finland hop on over to my Facebook page!
-- https://www.facebook.com/kayla.jeter ]
"The Other Side"
So for those of you who don't follow me on social
media or I don't speak with on an every day basis may be wonder what I'm up to
these days. During my time in Finland I had a lot of time to figure out what I
want from life, how I want to leave my mark. Well, I'm still trying to figure
all of that out but I did decide that I wanted to return to the States for a
while. Spending so much time away from my family in college and missing
out on special family moments really made me think about how I wanted to spend
these next few years. After many talks with my life mentors and weighing my
options, I decided it was time for me to hang up my sneaks and see what else
life had to offer for me. Although my time as a player had come to an end, I
knew I still wanted to be involved in athletics in fitness. I mean has run my
life for the past 10 years. So I decided to look towards Graduate Assistant
positions to get my second master's in Health and Exercise. During my research
I came across the University of Cincinnati, they had exactly the program I
wanted and it was an ideal distance from home and my southern home (Knoxville).
Initially I did not see any GA positions open but I thought, "What the
heck, why not contact the Head Coach and see if I can help?" Turns out I
couldn't have contacted a better program. My boss and Cincinnati Head Coach
Molly Alvey knew me previously from her time at Ole Miss, the assistant coach
Phillip White had worked with my younger sister during his club days and the
volleyball AD had come from Tennessee! Talk about a perfect! I applied for the
program and then discovered there was an assistant coach position opening,
which I was selected to fill and can now say I am a Bearcat!
For the past four months I have been getting to
life as an assistant coach while enjoying my new home. It has been a non-stop
ride since I landed back on American soil, I moved to Cincinnati two days later
to begin my job, and I've been loving every moment! The girls are great, my
staff is awesome, and being a Bearcat is just like being with family. I could not
represent a better program and work with better people. To say I am blessed is
an understatement. God has a plan.
Live your passion :: Love on purpose
Today marks the first official practice day of the 2014 preseason training and it's odd being on the other side. I'm use to waking up and having to move into the dorms for a week, taking time to mental prepare for what is about to come and being surrounded by my teammates 24/7 for two weeks and eventually four months. I never knew how much planning went into the whole event; let's just say I was humbled this past week in our training camp preparation. Honestly, it's odd not being a player anymore, not being a student-athlete or a professional. It's a title that although I did not define myself by I loved, it just felt right. A title I felt like I earned and totally embodied but all good things come to an end and I had made the decision to turn to the next chapter in my life. As a new season starts today signifying a new chapter in my life, I thought I would write a few last words to my player journey. This is not my farewell to volleyball as a whole but more of a thank-you for all it's given me. With the my new season brings new challenges and less time for me to keep all of you up-to-date with me. If you would like to continue snooping in on my life, feel free to follow me on Twitter -- @CoachK_JeterUC -- and Instagram -- k_jete. You'll get to see what it's like from the other side!
