People have their own lives and we meet so many different people in our lifetime but how often do we truly get to know the people we meet?
James Lotts is my classmate this semester and if it were not for this assignment who knows if I would have had the opportunity to hear his story.
His journey in life is not a traditional one and hearing all the trials and tribulations that he has gone through to get to where he is now is truly a fascinating story.
Lotts’s story starts in Arizona where he lived in a city called Surprise. Where he grew up around his family, until college where he yearned for a change so he decided to attend Northern Arizona University.
Change can have different effects on everyone but it can also open people’s eyes to new possibilities. It also takes courage to be able to embrace change and leave the life you have known since you were a child.
The environment that Lotts was in was not only different but new to him and he learned a lot about himself during that time at NAU.
After spending two years at NAU he realized a decline in his mental health and he learned that the environment he was in was not good for him at the time. He said that he felt lost and overall came to the conclusion that NAU was not the right environment for him.
Change can lead to transformation and during a time of growth James felt alone which
was not easy for him during this time of his life it also made him think about the future he wanted for himself.
He expressed the joy he found at NAU was working with KJACK radio where he had the opportunity to have his own talk show. James found his joy in the little things during a dark transition in his life.
However, his time at NAU made him realize that he had an affinity for sports and more specifically sports journalism. Unfortunately, sports journalism was not available there and instead of settling for just a journalism degree he followed his heart and left NAU.
He trusted himself to know that his journey at NAU had to come to an end so that he could start the next chapter in his life. Ultimately he understood the environment that he was in was no longer serving him even though he had no idea where life would take him he still dared to embrace change yet again.
He took time off from school and during that time his friend from college invited him to his graduation and when he saw his friend graduating he felt something. He felt the desire to have that for himself, to be able to graduate but this time around doing what he enjoys.
James has a passion for sports and he did not always know that he wanted to be a sports journalist. When the realization came to him he did not give up, he applied to ASU because he knew he could pursue his sports journalist career.
The key moment in his life that changed his journey from feeling lost and not knowing what his future was going to be to knowing he made the right decision was getting an internship that changed his life.
This internship led him to meet and interview professional athletes. Not just any athletes but he got to meet his favorite team, the Diamondbacks. This was a special moment for him because it is his team that has always brought him joy.
Growing up he played baseball which is something he also learned was just not for him and he decided to move on from that as well. He learned that anxiety can have an effect on his performance as an athlete and it was hard to enjoy the game at times. It quickly turned from a joy to play, to a chore. He knew better than to continue doing something that did not bring him happiness anymore.
This is admirable to me that he can trust himself to be able to change and adapt. Throughout James’ life, he has found the light through his dark times and even though he may have changed paths and left certain environments he never gave up on himself.
Now he is happy in the environment that he is in and is continuing to follow his passion.
No matter what challenges he may face, James knows how to chase the light.
