Something Positive

Have you ever had a moment that you wish everyone could experience for themselves? Something positive that lets you know that many things are good in this world and that the future is in good hands with the next generation?

I have those experiences frequently and recently I witnessed an event involving my youngest child, Sam, who is 14 years old and a freshman in high school.

Sam is a kind and unique kid who has an innate ability to make people feel good and laugh. His observations in life are honest, offbeat and funny. He has been raised in a family of slim, nimble parents and siblings, who love to run, while his body is wide, powerful and not quite so nimble. This hasn’t been easy for Sam as there have been many nights at the supper table when he would shout, “Can’t we just stop talking about running!”

With his body type everyone thought that Sam should tryout for the football team. Sam had played youth football and simply didn’t enjoy it. His athletic passions are basketball and baseball. He has an accurate shot with a very light touch in basketball and a strong arm with great location in baseball.

As the new school year approached I began the process of encouraging Sam to run cross country to help with his improvement in basketball and baseball. He knew all the kids on the team because his older brother ran when he was in high school and his sister currently competes for the team and is consistently among the top five scorers. The kids on the team treat each other with great respect, encouragement and kindness and this atmosphere is heavily reinforced by the coaches.

Just before pre-season was about to begin Sam approached me and suggested that I simply give him the workouts to do and he would workout on his own. I certainly have the knowledge base to do that but for the first time I forced one of my kids to play a particular sport. I told Sam that working out with other kids would be much more enjoyable and I knew he would be much more consistent in his training and would get much better results. He was fine with the decision. From the very first day of practice he was always ready to go. When I picked him up at the end of practice he always had a smile on his face. His body began to change and although he was the slowest runner on the team it was clear that he had a big, strong heart.

Sam always enjoyed the races and he was very concerned with his own improvement. He made steady progress as the season went along but because the cross country courses very from school to school it was hard to tell how much faster he was actually getting. I asked him if he wanted me to time him in the mile. His personal best time or personal record in the mile before the season started was 9:48. I told him I thought he could break 9 minutes so we went up to the high school track and I timed and encouraged him as he worked his way around the quarter mile oval. To my surprise he ran the mile in 8:22. I told him I knew he could break 8 minutes by the end of the season and a fire was lit in Sam’s belly.

Two weeks later he spent the weekend with his older brother, Brandon, at Georgetown
University. Brandon runs for Georgetown and on that Saturday he got some of his teammates together to cheer for Sam in his quest for the 8 minute mile. He came up short but he showed tremendous improvement with an 8:08 effort.

As the season began to wind down Sammy ran his last junior varsity race in the conference championship. His improvement from the beginning of the season on the same course was 5:18. He could have stopped training at that point but like most of the kids on the cross country team he was hooked on the uplifting feeling of exercise and the camaraderie of the team. He loved hanging with his teammates and it certainly didn’t hurt that many of his teammates were attractive young women.

One last time Sam and I headed to the high school track on a Sunday to break the magical 8 minute barrier. Roger Bannister never had as much focus. I paced him through the first half-mile in 4:00 and then moved off the track to cheer. As he came down the final stretch, with his teeth clenched and his face red, it was clear that he was close. I hit the watch as he crossed the line and collapsed in a gasping heap. I slowly looked down to reveal the time…8:00.32! So close! Sam was disappointed but he was happy with the improvement and he immediately began to talk about trying to do it again the following week.

I emailed his cross country coaches and asked if he could try to break 8 minutes at one of the practices with the other kids around. They loved the idea and set a day and time for Sam’s quest. They also gave him workouts designed to specifically improve his mile time.

When the day arrived Sam made sure that he had everything set to go. His mood was light and happy when I dropped him off at school and I told him I’d leave work to come watch him run at 3 pm. As 3 pm approached I predictably received several last minute calls and I got a late start on my way to the school. When I arrived at the track Sam was already running. I stepped out of my car to hear the thunderous cheering of his teammates. It stunned me as I looked around and saw the entire cross country team holding handmade signs, beating on drums and yelling encouragement at the top of their young lungs. The tears in my eyes came immediately as I watched Sam’s stride grow stronger with each word of encouragement and every beat of the drum. Coming down the final stretch he made his push to the finish and crossed the line in 7:37. His teammates were wonderful as their cheers grew even louder and anyone watching would have thought that Sam had just won a state championship himself. Sam was so emotionally lifted by the support of his team I think he could have run another 7:37 mile right then.

Sam never could have reached his goal without the support of his teammates and coaches. The effort they showed in making signs and outwardly encouraging Sam tells me a lot about this group of kids and their generation. They are good to each other and they know how to work as a team. The future looks bright when I see it through Sam’s eyes. I hope every child gets a chance to have the same view.