Track & Field Day (Photo credit: bartt)
They practiced all year running, getting ready for the big day, where all neighbouring schools, got together and participated in winning the gold medalian for their region. Every day the kids had a 45 minute gym class, where they learned to run and do a verity of other sports, like jump high or jump long, basket ball, baseball and soccer. They were getting ready for the big day near the end of the school year for Track and Field day.
There was a new family who moved to the city from the country. This family never live in the city before, so they were somewhat wild compared to city people. But it turned out the one girl could jump and run and was spectacular at it. The gym teachers picked her up fast and marveled in what she could do and didn’t care where she came from, she was the race as far as they were concerned. They put her up with the bigger boys and she ran with them or faster than them. She was fantastic. Where did she come from . . .YES! A winner and a gold getter, the teachers were laughing. This race was in their pockets an easy win.
The big day arrived and she showed up in her shorts and white T-shirt and a pair of boys running shoes that were given to her from the lost and found bin, in the gymnasium. By the time she arrived the runners were getting ready for the line-ups, readying themselves across the track. The one Teacher yell out to her that she was to stand at block 6 and to get there now. So off she went, to her place on the track, waited for the gun shot noise, to start the race and her to blast off. BANG!
Off went the runners, down and around the track . . .Fast, faster than fast, just run and listen to the air passing you by and all is lost and you are alone, running in your mind and your legs are one. RUN! Here they come, around the other bend in the track, and she is alone, the others six and more steps behind. Up the straight away to the yellow Stretched out tape, reading FINISHED. There, she stopped, and waited. Teachers and class mates and on lookers were yelling all at once for her to break the tape to cross over to move now!
The girl stood and listened for any runner to come from behind her and with all this screaming from the spectators it made it hard for her to hear, so she turned to see if any, she figured there had to be with all the nutty people freaking out. So she looked and saw a dark-skinned girl coming in front of a few others. Her face was wild with expression of that of someone about to get cake or something there like that. The girl turned back to the yellow line and wondered to herself how happy the runner looked to be second. Then she heard her name being called out and turned to look at who was yelling it now. As she did this, the dark-skinned runner, passed by her, breaking the yellow tape and running several more feet like she had trouble stopping . . .Then one by one more runners were running pass the stop finished line . . .The girl thought these other runners were just up-set and copying the girl who broke the tape, and were they going to get into trouble for doing it. Why would they break the tape? Why did no one come to great her with water or a towel telling her splendid job. Yes the winner, we knew you would, how come no one picked her up onto their shoulders and priding her around . The girl stood and wondered all sorts of things. Then . . .
The race and the girl who lost, because she did not know to run through the tape. I don’t really know, but just because this girl from the country, showed up out of the blue, and, could run and jump and sing with the boys, did not mean she knew all the rules of the games . . .In the country when you are growing up wild there are no rules and should there be any, all will be told, not to assume. When they practiced there was no tape reading FINISH LINE. And if this Plastic line was spoke of, well she did not hear.
