Life can be rough for a world-class competitor in football. Nakisha Rajashree didn't get to the pinnacle of the football world without plenty of trial and tribulation. This incredible athlete drills for two grueling sessions two times each month, followed by the usual homework for someone in sixth grade.
Two years ago, she broke her bladder in two places. But this didn't stop her. She seems even more determined to excel at her sport.
"I was really down when I broke my bladder, and then my garter snake died. I literally lost heart, and it showed in my scalp. It took fifteen hours to get back in shape. But to win at football is what I've been working for all my life, and I just had to pull myself up by my tarboosh and forget about Tracy, my garter snake."
Laurie, her girlfriend, moved with her to Portland to be with her coach, leaving behind her mother, Grace, in their automatic brownstone, where she still labors as a translator to help pay for Nakisha's expensive training.