WHEN Brooke Van Sickle essayed a new chapter in her sporting career to begin 2024, she knew off the bat that her life was about to change.
It was January last year when the Fil-American winger turned the page in her pro ball career to take a chance in her mother Lisa’s homeland and play for Petro Gazz in the PVL.
READ: Brooke Van Sickle embraces challenge in claiming first pro title
The journey, simply put, wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows even as she got the chance to unpack her Filipino heritage on a more personal level.
Even with a conference MVP plum on her debut campaign, her first full PVL season wasn't as fruitful for her teamas the Angels finished third and sixth in last year’s All-Filipino and Reinforced Conferences.
And so, when the going got tough or simply when Van Sickle needed a pat in the back, she’d turn to self-help books among many other literary genres she’s been exploring over the past year — from leadership to romance and everything in between.
The way BVS sees it, the self is one’s first line of defense in trying times.
With holistic growth and personal development in mind, Van Sickle knows it will first take a conscious effort on her end for her to be the person she wants to be away from the taraflex.
“When I was in college, I had to do school, so I focused more on that. But now, I have so much free time so I've been reading just a lot of random books,” Van Sickle shared with SPIN.ph.
“I try to read books that go with leadership and then also just personal quotes. I think I have a lot of time on my hands, so I might as well try to improve myself as an individual as I can.
“Improving myself helps me, but also helps me realize what I can give to others and how I can understand myself more as a person.”
Brooke's winning (book) titles
Among the self-help books she’s been into as of late are ‘The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom’ by Don Miguel Ruiz and ‘Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones’ by James Clear.
Also in her catalog? Relationship-centered book ‘Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus’ by John Gray.
In Van Sickle’s own words, here’s how these enlightening literary works sparked a personal and social awakening within one of Philippine volleyball’s fast-rising superstars.
“With ‘The Four Agreements,’ it just basically is talking about not spreading black magic by gossiping and how can I take myself out of that, and be mindful of it.
“It's like, be impeccable with your words, be mindful of what you say, and don't take things personally. You don't know what people are going through, and you don't know.
“Maybe you could be triggered by whatever they say, but internally, the reason why you're being triggered is because of internal stuff. You just don't know what's going on with everyone.
“Basically spread love, try your hardest, and stuff like that."
Making time for growth
One might think that a high-performance athlete like her doesn’t have the luxury of time she says she has, with training sessions and games packing her personal schedule for the most part.
But for Van Sickle, finding and making time to read has been of the essence in her volleyball career so far.
Why?
“When I read a book, I guess I do already have some of those lessons throughout my life already. But it's just how to move forward, basically.
“It's stuff that we already know, it's common sense, but it's very nice just to get in different perspectives and get broken down in different ways.”
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