marathon kids
i believe satchel paige was on to something when he said, "avoid running at all times." not everyone is willing to follow with exactness. obviously, playing any sport will require running, as does being the parent of a 5 year-old. jackson has always got me running somewhere.
judging by the abundance of over-weight and obese americans, satchel paige's mantra must be the most revered in the country.
what i don't care for is the endless pursuit of minutes and miles that dominates the running world. not only do i not have the feet for this kind of activity, i never have been able to abide the monotony. jackson, on the other hand, has recently completed a marathon.
in 1996, a friend of mine named kay morris started a children's running program. over the course of 6 months, or so, k - 5th grade-age children will run 26 miles during their p.e. class or during recess. at the end of the program, all of the kids get together to run the final 1/4 mile as a group and receive recognition. the first year, kay went to runtex for sponsorship. when asked, she said she expected to have 300 to 400 children participate in the program. it was only available in the austin isd. 3000 participated. this year is the tenth year of marathon kids, and in the austin area alone, 40,000 elementary students participated. marathon kids is now all over the state and country...all because kay thought kids needed to get a reinforced message that it is not hard to get off of their butts and do something..
jackson and his friends love running. they talk about their laps all the time, and they wear the bracelets they receive as progress markers. it is an amazing thing to watch as these kids see themselves accomplish something so enormous, and realize that nothing is beyond the reach of a person with enough patience and determination. thanks, kay.
after we finished jackson's final lap, i sought out my friend kay. this was no minor task, as the football field and track were swarming with people. i found her in the middle of a television interview. she was being interviewed by a reporter from cnn. after her time was up, i caught her attention so i could quickly tell her that jackson absolutely loves this program, and thank her for keeping it alive. she asked me if i wanted to say that on camera. ummm, no thanks. i gotta run.
judging by the abundance of over-weight and obese americans, satchel paige's mantra must be the most revered in the country.
what i don't care for is the endless pursuit of minutes and miles that dominates the running world. not only do i not have the feet for this kind of activity, i never have been able to abide the monotony. jackson, on the other hand, has recently completed a marathon.
in 1996, a friend of mine named kay morris started a children's running program. over the course of 6 months, or so, k - 5th grade-age children will run 26 miles during their p.e. class or during recess. at the end of the program, all of the kids get together to run the final 1/4 mile as a group and receive recognition. the first year, kay went to runtex for sponsorship. when asked, she said she expected to have 300 to 400 children participate in the program. it was only available in the austin isd. 3000 participated. this year is the tenth year of marathon kids, and in the austin area alone, 40,000 elementary students participated. marathon kids is now all over the state and country...all because kay thought kids needed to get a reinforced message that it is not hard to get off of their butts and do something..
jackson and his friends love running. they talk about their laps all the time, and they wear the bracelets they receive as progress markers. it is an amazing thing to watch as these kids see themselves accomplish something so enormous, and realize that nothing is beyond the reach of a person with enough patience and determination. thanks, kay.
after we finished jackson's final lap, i sought out my friend kay. this was no minor task, as the football field and track were swarming with people. i found her in the middle of a television interview. she was being interviewed by a reporter from cnn. after her time was up, i caught her attention so i could quickly tell her that jackson absolutely loves this program, and thank her for keeping it alive. she asked me if i wanted to say that on camera. ummm, no thanks. i gotta run.
posted by cm at 2/13/2006
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