football IS for girls, by EF

This article is written for yooou! by 12-year-old, “EF”.

Ever since I was young I have always loved football. Every Sunday my dad and I would get a big bowl of popcorn and sit on the couch and just watch football. He taught me about the game and the teams and pretty soon just like him, I was a diehard Cowboys fan.

At school, girls are stereotyped as only liking shopping or clothes or jewelry. While of course some of us girls may truly love that stuff, other girls may be into sports or cars instead. Better yet, girls can be interested in both! I happen to love sports but I also have a love for the arts.  Anyone can be stereotyped at any time and anyplace because of their looks, race or even gender. Every day girls will be told they can not do something as well as a boy can do it and that is truly a lie. Anyone can do anything you put your mind to if you truly try your hardest. Now I am not saying you could be a superhero or a princess but you get the point. My favorite quote by Les Brown is ”Shoot for the Moon and even if you miss you will land among the stars”. Just know that there aren’t things that only boys can do and there aren’t things that only girls should be interested in. Anyone can do anything if they put forth their best effort and try their hardest.

So I leave with this, don’t be afraid to break the stereotype and try something out of your box. Don’t do what you think you are supposed to like or what you think your friends need you to like. If you don’t be just YOU, you might miss out on the thing you could wind up loving the most.

So when your dad (or mom) asks you to sit down and watch the Super Bowl, try it… You might be surprised. And if your day usually revolves around a muddy soccer field, feel free to take your mom up on that pedicure, it might actually feel good on your sore feet.