Magazine Archive: This Is What Dreams Are Made Of: Profiling Tamina’s Eleven-Year Journey to WWE Gold

By Taeler Hendrix from FightfulMag.com issue 3

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In the grand scheme of things, pursuing the pro wrestling dream is about as taboo a life choice as it gets in the eyes of society. The very conviction with which we define happiness and success for ourselves is often at odds with society’s preconceived notions about what success looks like. In essence, we’re living for the opinions and expectations of others and not necessarily our own. Sometimes it’s family and sometimes it’s complete strangers. And in the midst of the social media age, we as pro wrestlers often pander from our own definitions of happiness and success for the fickle likes, comments, dirt sheets, and match ratings. Now, I’d like to tell you pro wrestling is an easy dream to pursue despite societal expectations. I’d like to tell you that it’s easy to ignore the opinions of others. I’d also like to tell you that it’ll all turn out exactly as you dreamed when you were young. But I can’t do that. As I found out personally, it is not easy. Nor does it turn out exactly as you dreamed when you were small, looking up at the world around you. What I can tell you with complete earnestness is that small minds kill more dreams than the act of pursuing them. And it is that ideal that shines through in this story.

Personally, I love getting the opportunity to highlight others who have followed the same journey as myself. I am immensely inspired every time I see another dreamer succeed in this business. And this time is no different, as it belongs to a WWE Superstar whose own story is one I feel a connection to. A sense of shared comradery adding solidarity and sincerity to my words. With that in mind, I would be remiss if I did not add that, as we in this generation become more acquainted with ourselves as dreamers, we learn to value our definitions of what happiness and success means to us. Individuals with our own dreams. Our stories, waiting to be told just like this one. Out with the old pillars of success and in with normalizing the pursuit of childhood dreams. Childhood dreams like WWE Superstar Tamina’sare full of self-belief and gumption and reside in the realm of possibility.

Real stories of real people like Tamina, who chose the taboo over the conventional and dared to try in the face of opposition. In my opinion, Tamina’s eleven-year journey as a WWE Superstar and finally achieving her first moment with WWE gold is indicative of defining your own happiness and success.

To the average person, pro wrestling is not one of those preapproved careers indicating success to society. And so most can’t relate. They cannot understand the emotional tug-of-war abundant in this industry. They cannot understand the dedication we have to the physically taxing demands on our bodies every single day. They cannot imagine 300+ days a year on the road and the sacrifice that entails. The hustle. The bumps. The criticism. The pressure. The injuries. The diets. The back-breaking lows and the adrenaline-pumping highs. It’s a world unto itself that few get to see.

Almost fifteen years ago, I began my journey towards my WWE childhood dream. A quest not understood by family, teachers, or even most friends. Many of them hoped it was just a phase I’d grow out of. To be quite honest, with no official ‘how-to’ manual, I had absolutely no idea what I was in for. As a young impressionable seventeen-year-old student, I was unprepared for the world of professional wrestling. I was so young, wide-eyed, and incredibly naïve, yet full of hopes, dreams, and passion. Dreams full of WWE grandeur. Hope and grit poured into my work. Every training session, tape studied, seminar attended, roads traveled, bumps taken, and criticisms given. I had no idea where this dream would take me, but I knew I had this dream for a reason, and it ultimately led me to walk the same WWE halls crossing paths with both Nattieand Tamina, women I adore. The same place where for the last eleven years, Tamina has made her home.

While I cannot boast about being a second-generation wrestler like Tamina, I can vouch for the toll I’ve seen that pressure take. Being a second or even third-generation wrestler in pro wrestling is not as easy as people think, and most especially in WWE. On paper, Tamina should have been living on dream street. However, as it so often happens, being a legacy child is not what it seems. Ask Charlotte Flair, Bray Wyatt, Nattie Neidhart, Barry Windham, Raquel González, Dean Malenko,The Rock,Lacey Von Erichor Shaul Guerrero. Yes, it opens certain doors and that veteran pedigree being passed down is like drinking from a personally available well full of intrinsic knowledge. But, on the other hand, the levels of expectation for legacy athletes like Tamina are far different and possess a far more crushing weight than that of a clean slate that I and many others have had. Many legacy children find that the road to stardom in WWE isn’t always as easy as it seems. The road has many pitfalls with no guaranteed success like that of your wildest childhood dreams at a level worthy of your family name.

The pressure to be as good if not better than your name lest you, therefore, diminish its value is unimaginable. Less tolerance for mediocrity while learning. Trying to hone the craft while in the public eye and dealing with criticism, whether warranted or not. And quite often, there are numerous promises and expectations that are not met, which leaves stars like Tamina feeling bereft. A yearning desire for the opportunity to prove themselves to the WWE Universe. All to fulfill their own WWE childhood dream that at times becomes overwhelming. It’s as if you’re a vehicle with its wheels stuck in the mud. At a standstill with your foot full-throttle on the gas, trying not to blow the transmission. It’s unfortunately the nature of the beast and goes hand in hand as part of the ascent in the WWE. After all, WWE is a place few call home. And even fewer than that get the opportunity to leave their mark as evidence of their own painstakingly traversed road to WWE gold. A place Tamina had been on the cusp of for quite some time and managed to persevere, leading her to May 14, 2021 — the day where things changed.

You never forget the feeling of winning your first title. Throughout the first five years of my career, there were numerous promises of titles that never came to pass. Looking back, I’m actually relieved because it made my first title win that much more worth the earning. After almost six years, I would win my first title —the OVW Women’s Championship. A title held by Mickie James, Serena Deeb, Beth Phoenixand others. I’d fight and defend a belt held by WWE Superstars I looked up to. A dream experience I knew I’d never forget when I first felt the weight of that title belt in my hopeful hands. That belt at that moment and that very first championship win launched my career. Three years later, I’d take my first steps under the WWE banner, where I’d meet Tamina. It’s these feelings that replay in my mind reminding me of the little girl I was who dreamed of that moment. In this, I can relate to Tamina.

However, six years on the independents before my first championship gold is quite different from being in WWE for eleven years before championship gold. It was almost eleven years to the day with WWE that Tamina finally had her own moment. When I think of her winning the WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles, that’s what I see and feel. I see another dreamer who never gave up. I see a woman who fought for the dream she too had as a young girl. I see another woman who I’d be proud to call my friend. I see a WWE Superstar who earned her first WWE championship. Through literal blood, sweat, and tears, Tamina fought for her own chance to further cement her own legacy within the WWE Universe. She will forever be a part of the WWE history books as a champion in the women’s division. I couldn’t help but proudly cheer for Tamina as her dream finally came to fruition.

As someone who loves pro wrestling, I can attest to the imagery that I know comes with the moment a dreamer succeeds in this business. It’s exactly as authentic and awe-inspiring as Tamina’s reaction on WWE television. An adventure that is unlike any other when you put in hard work without sacrificing your integrity. A journey you survive through determination and mental fortitude that you didn’t even know you had. In the end, a place where you thrive due to your innate passion and your refusal to give up. When you realize that thousands of people dream of one day becoming WWE Superstars, it puts into perspective how few actually succeed. Thus the sentiment this moment represents for Tamina who, not only tried but withstood and ultimately succeeded.

At this moment, Tamina made the little girl inside of her proud. The world would be a better place if more kids went after their dreams, and that starts with us and stories like this. Kids with dreams, growing up and going after them, shows the world the true realm of possibility if, at first, we choose to believe in ourselves just as Tamina did for eleven years in WWE. The WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship win for Tamina, being her first, that is the moment that supersedes all others. The first win makes it all worth it. No matter how long it took, that first moment where you become a WWE Champion, it’s an irrevocable goosebumps-worthy moment. Your first true championship win is once in a lifetime.

Imagine that you’re in Tamina’s shoes following her championship match. Grasping that title belt proudly, this tangible piece of WWE history sitting heavy in your hands. Time speeds by and somehow stops at a standstill at the same time. Your heart is beating fast. You’re gulping in breaths, trying to remain collected. Your match replaying in your mind. A sense of accomplishment. Pride. Excitement. Disbelief. Tears in your eyes as you begin to register the cacophony of emotions you’re experiencing. And just when you think you’ve processed the moment, while being in the moment, while trying but failing miserably to commit it to memory — boom! Here comes the pièce de résistance! Pure raw untapped undiluted childhood joy rushes in coursing through your veins because you became what you dreamed of so wholeheartedly as a child. At that moment, you became your own hero.

Almost eleven years to the day, the journey of an inspirational WWE Superstar for you, the reader, to root for and, by proxy, see yourselves therein. Tamina personifies my philosophy, “all you need is love, guts, and gumption. Self-love to realize that you and your dreams matter. Guts to go after your dreams and believe in yourself when no one else will. And the gumption to see your dream through while cheering for yourself in the silence, letting your success be your noise no matter how long it takes.” Tamina becoming one half of your WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions is proof that this is indeed what dreams are made of.

Taeler Hendrix has contributed to Fightful since 2020, after a pro wrestling career that saw her as a prominent figure in both Ring of Honor and TNA Wrestling.

Twitter: @Taeler_Hendrix