The flight of a volleyball is consistent
But the flight of an aspiring volleyball player is not
Those two elements need to meet in time in space. Arm and ball, body and line, twist and thrust.
When they do, magic happens.
It is 2021
We are misaligned. All of us.
The throes of Covid lockdown are upon us, but still we muddle about awkwardly to make a volleyball season happen. Highschoolers sign into the zoom, three rotations with coaches: skill session, stretching, and workout. They rotate through, we shout encouragement into the void.
Many of them show up
But they’re not really here.
We are all sleepwalking, slumbering hand in hand.
Others fall off, dropping in to visit periodically, but eventually understanding that this is not worth their time,
because none of it was worth their time.
We all had that feeling, regularly.
The ennui, the sense of hopelessness, and loneliness, took us over.
School, and volleyball, for certain, wasn’t meant to be this way.
Today feels different.
Cathartic.
Cacophony of sounds, whistles, chance, the staccato of balls hitting the floor and the wall
I have energy, enthusiasm,
Joy
The last three years of self stilted, interrupted, out of sync, like a volleyballer and volleyball that just can’t meet.
A group of humans, together in this space, we revel in the joy of sport
And the arc of ball
and player
align
Get Up Eight 
As I started reading and saw it was about volleyball, I was interested. My nephew back in 2016 graduated from Long Beach State on a full volleyball scholarship. As I read on, I realized how brilliantly you describe covid’s impact on this team sport and then pivot to show how it feels know. Arc is the perfect title. Thanks for sharing.
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The contrast, is so clear. Nothing compares to being together in person and for sports that is how it should be. You did well during those Zoom days. This sentence sums it up, “A group of humans, together in this space, we revel in the joy of sport.”
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Love this! The arc of the ball and the player align! Just perfect!
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I love how you isolate the word joy all by itself on it’s line.
Your image of the arc of the ball meeting the player- or not-
That really works for that quarantine time of trying to make do without being together-
I’m glad to read another covid piece, as I think we need to remember
And to celebrate the now!!
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