Last evening I was walking around the track while the junior high football team was nearby at practice. This group of about 20 boys was running and running and running sprints. I wondered if this was their “reward” for losing their game last week.
When the torture was over, they removed their helmets and pads and headed to the locker room, crossing my path. They were led by #64, a studly type who was a good 6’2”, 200+ pounds--still running, easily. Following him were two boys about half his size, struggling to keep up. The rest didn’t even try. I feel sorry for the poor kids who have to go up against #64 in blocking drills. Scary. Very scary.
The scenario brought back a time when I was still teaching and went to a junior high basketball game to help the yearbook photographers get some pictures. The year was 2003. We had a grand total of seven boys on our team (I double checked the yearbook and this is the truth), and two were sick and absent this particular night. Out from the dressing room comes 20 or so players from Erie, led by some 8th grade beast who was over six feet tall. He had a full mustache, for god’s sake. Talk about intimidating. There was more hair over his lip than on the combined 10 legs of our whole team! Our guys were 1-11 that year. It was one of those character-building seasons.
Junior high is like that. A time of inequities. If the shrimps can just survive the misery for a few more years, their bodies usually evolve into something more respectable, while the big lugs eventually stop growing. Until that miracle arrives, those smaller boys will be running and running and running--trying in vain to keep up.
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