Authors: Matt Christopher
“Yeah, that was my watch,” Theo said. “It’s time for me to run.”
“Okay, then,” said Steve. “Don’t push yourself too hard. I’ll be seeing you around. Nice meeting you, Theo.”
“You, too,” Theo said. “And thanks.”
Steve speeded up and took off, waving good-bye as he did. Theo took a drink and began to run, encouraged by the fact that
this Steve, who was a really good runner, had started in much the same way that he was doing now.
As he ran, Theo actually passed a few others on the track, including the two older walkers. By the time he felt tired enough
to slow down to a walk, he checked his watch to find that he’d been running for six and a half minutes and had covered two
and a half laps. He walked for a minute and then ran again until his watch beeped and it was time for his last ten-minute
walk.
In that ten minutes, Theo walked three quarters of a mile. Afterward, he drank again and did his stretches. Steve caught his
eye, running past, and gave Theo a thumbs-up signal. The boy who’d given Theo a hard time was also still on the track but
ignored him, which was fine.
Theo felt tired but not wiped out. It had been a good workout. He’d met a good runner who’d given him advice and encouragement.
He’d learned a little about good manners on a track. And he’d run a little farther and a little faster than he had before.
That made it an excellent day.
That evening, Theo dropped by to see Paul. Mr. Baskin came out to where the boys were sitting in the backyard. “How are you
doing, Theo? Have you recovered from what happened the other day?”
Theo nodded. “Yeah, I had a good run on the track today. I ran for more than six minutes, nonstop, and I felt really good.
Also, I met this really nice guy who’s a good runner, and he helped me.”
“How did he help, Gee?” asked Paul.
“He told me that you shouldn’t run on the inside lane of a track unless you’re really fast, and he told me he got started
doing the same things your dad told me to do. Also, when this kid got on my case because I was walking, Steve told him to
get lost.”
Paul said, “Steve was the really good runner?”
“Yeah, he was really nice,” Theo answered. “And he runs long distances, too.”
Mr. Baskin asked, “Did you get his last name?”
“Uhh…” Theo thought for a moment. “LaMotta. That was it. Steve LaMotta.”
Mr. Baskin’s eyes widened. “You met
Steve LaMotta
on the school track?”
“Who is he, Dad?” Paul asked.
“Steve LaMotta is one of the top American distance runners! He runs in major meets, ten thousand meters, twenty thousand meters,
and marathons. Wait a minute, I have something to show you.”
Mr. Baskin hurried into the house. Paul and Theo exchanged a look.
“Guess this Steve is someone special,” Theo said.
Paul smiled. “Special enough so Dad’s heard of him and got real excited. I never saw him like that.”
“Here we are,” said Paul’s father, coming outside carrying a magazine. He opened it up and leafed through it. “This is a running
magazine I get every month.… Wait a sec.… Here we go.” He handed the open magazine to Theo. “Is this the man you met today?”
Theo stared. The magazine was opened to a full-page ad for a brand of running shoe. Most of the page was taken up by a big
color photograph of a runner crossing the finish line on a track. In the
background was a huge grandstand full of people. The runner in the picture was breaking a tape stretched across the track,
which meant that he had won the race. The runner in the picture was Steve LaMotta! Steve LaMotta was a star! He endorsed a
brand of shoe! And he had started out just like Theo!
T
heo’s next big day was during his third week of running, when he ran three quarters of a mile — three whole laps around the
track! — without a stop. It was a hot day, too, about the same kind of day on which he’d collapsed not long before. But he
knew enough now to be sure to drink often, and didn’t try to push too hard. He was walking faster and expected to be able
to run a full mile very soon.
One day soon after, Paul mentioned that he was going to the park the next day to play some ball. “I don’t know whether you
want to go, after what happened last time.…”
“Sure!” Theo said. Paul was surprised by Theo’s enthusiasm. Actually, Theo was a little surprised himself. But he wanted to
go. He was feeling different about himself, less worried about making mistakes.
“Great!” Paul said. “Come by here tomorrow at two o’clock and we’ll ride over.”
Theo shook his head. “I’m going to run in the park first. I’ll meet you there.”
“Okay,” Paul agreed. “If you want, I can stop by your place and bring your glove.”
“That’d be cool,” said Theo. “See you at two o’clock at the field.”
The next day, Theo rode to the park, did his stretches, and walked the first eight minutes, feeling wonderful. It was a warm,
pleasant day, and Theo was able to enjoy himself as he walked. He looked at the scenery, listened to the birds, and breathed
deeply and easily. He was actually looking forward to playing softball. He smiled to himself. A month ago, if someone had
told him, “You’re going to look forward to playing ball,” Theo would have laughed.
His watch beeped, and Theo took a swallow from the bottle at his side. He broke into a run. Maybe he could make it for ten
minutes without a break today. But at the nine-minute mark, Theo felt like he was beginning to breathe too hard and decided
not to try for ten whole minutes. Thirty seconds later, he
slowed to a walk. Maybe, if he hadn’t been planning to play ball later, he might have gone for the ten minutes. But he wanted
to have plenty of energy left for the game. If he messed up today, it wouldn’t be because he was wiped out.
Theo walked for ten minutes, finishing up near the field where the ballgame was going to happen, which was where he’d left
his bike. He did his stretches; he no longer had to bring Mr. Baskin’s diagrams, because he knew all the stretches by heart.
He spotted Paul’s bike nearby and headed that way.
Paul and some others were standing in a big circle and tossing a softball around. Paul looked up and saw Theo coming and smiled.
So did Van Sluman. Van’s smile was different from Paul’s. Van looked more like a cat that had just spotted a tasty bird nearby.
“Hey, Gee, how’s it going?” Paul asked, sticking out a hand for a low five.
“How’s the Great Runner doing?” Van asked, looking around to his friends and inviting them to get in on the fun. “Broken four
minutes for a mile yet? Run any marathons?”
Theo smiled back, not looking upset at all. “Not yet.”
One of the others looked Theo up and down. “Hey, Gordimer, you losing weight?”
“Yeah, you look thinner,” said another.
Theo was pleased. He shrugged. “I lost a few pounds. That’s what happens when you start burning up more calories.”
“Oh, right, you’re burning up calories, huh?” Van said. “All those workouts, huh?”
Theo nodded. “That, and I’m not eating as much junk food lately, either.”
Paul grinned at Van. “You know what junk food is, right, Van? Stuff like peanuts. By the way, have you started practicing
pushing that peanut with your nose yet? It’s a long way from one end of Main Street to the other. Better pick up some knee
pads, too.”
A few of the guys snickered, and Van’s smirk lost some of its power.
“Are you really running, Gordimer?” asked the boy who had first noticed Theo’s weight loss.
“Yeah, most days. It’s pretty cool, I really like it.”
“How far do you run?” the boy asked.
Theo shrugged. “In the park, it’s hard to know, exactly. Further than I used to, and not as far as I’ll be able to next month.”
“We going to just stand around, or are we going to play ball?” snapped Van.
“I vote we play ball,” Theo said. They chose up sides, and Theo was the last one to be picked. He wasn’t surprised or even
disappointed. Even though he was working at getting into better shape, nobody had any reason to figure that he was any better
as a ballplayer.
For the first inning, Theo did nothing to change anyone’s opinion of him — because he didn’t get a chance to bat and because
no balls were hit in his direction.
But in the second inning, an opposing hitter did hit a ball to right, hard, with a runner at first and only one out. It seemed
a sure extra-base hit; with Theo huffing and puffing after it, it might have been a home run. But Theo turned his back to
the infield and ran, looking back over his shoulder, reached out his glove… and
caught
it. The base runner, like everyone else on both teams, had been sure that the hit would be at least a double. He was almost
to
third base when he looked around and saw what had happened. Theo threw to first to complete a double play before the runner
could get halfway back.
As he trotted in from the outfield, Theo wore a big smile. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d made a good play in one
of these games. Maybe he never had.
Later on, Theo hit a ball into left center for a base hit. When the batter after him hit a line drive that got between two
outfielders, Theo raced around to score. It was another first for him. He noticed that other kids were looking at him with
surprise. Van Sluman was suddenly very quiet.
As the game went on, Theo didn’t suddenly turn into a star. But he played solidly, made no horrible mistakes, and made a few
more catches. He thought that maybe the next time they chose up teams, somebody else might be the last one to be picked.
After the game, Theo and Paul rode their bikes home. As they rode, Paul said, “Pretty good game today.”
“Yeah, it was, I guess,” Theo answered.
“You
guess?”
Paul laughed. “Cut it out.”
Theo joined in the laughter. “Okay, I
don’t
guess. I played better.”
“A lot better,” agreed Paul. “That running catch you made saved at least one run. And coming all the way around from first
to score! I felt like asking, ‘Who
is
that guy, and what has he done with Gee?’”
“I’m definitely faster,” Theo admitted.
“That’s true,” said Paul, “but it’s something else, too. A month ago, you wouldn’t even have tried to catch that ball. It
isn’t only a matter of running faster. You were… more sure of yourself today. You can see that, can’t you?”
Theo said, “You’re right. It’s true. Part of it is that I feel stronger and better since I started running. And part is something
Steve LaMotta said when I met him.
“There was this guy running on the track who gave me a hard time because I did something stupid. I didn’t know what I was
doing, so I was on the inside of the track, which is supposed to be for the faster runners. And I wasn’t even running at the
time. Later on, Steve said, ‘Guys like that don’t feel good unless they can make someone else feel bad.’
“When Van started ragging me today, I remembered that. Van’s the same kind of guy. I knew that if I let it show that it bothered
me, Van would win. So I didn’t. And you know what? It didn’t bother me.”
“Because you know yourself better than Van knows you,” Paul said. “You really have changed, Gee.”
Theo grinned. “Maybe. But I haven’t changed so much that I didn’t enjoy seeing Van look nervous about losing our bet.”
After getting home and cleaning up, Theo phoned Marj and asked if she wanted any company. His aunt didn’t sound wonderful
but said she’d be happy to see him for a little while.
Marj was sitting up, which was good to see, but she seemed in very low spirits. She said to Theo, “You’re looking good, young
man. You’re thinner and your skin has some color. You used to look like something that lived in tunnels underground and never
got out in the sun.”
“Well, I’ve gotten out of my tunnel,” Theo agreed. “I’m running and doing much better. I played softball today and didn’t
do anything terrible. How are you feeling?”
Marj closed her eyes. “Not all that great. I won’t
lie to you, Theo. I’m tired of feeling tired. It gets old, you know what I mean?”
“Sure, I understand,” Theo said. “But what I learned from what I’ve been doing is that it’s important to keep a good attitude.
Really. And don’t give up. I played better ball today because I wasn’t thinking of myself like a loser. So you should try
to keep thinking about how great it will be when you’re all better. It really helps. It sure helped me. And you know what?
You
do
look better. You even sound better. I mean, you’re sitting up and you have a sense of humor again. You may think I’m crazy,
but I can tell you’re doing all right.”
“That’s what you think?” Marj asked. “You’re not just being nice to an old lady?”
“I mean it,” Theo insisted. “You look stronger to me, even if you are tired. I bet you’ll be feeling much better real soon
— if you don’t give up and quit.”
Marj said, “Hey! Who’s coaching who around here?”
“I’m just saying what I think,” Theo said. “And I think you’re doing pretty well. And that you can help yourself even more.”
Marj’s expression seemed more cheerful than when Theo had arrived. “Listen, smart guy, do me a favor.”
“Sure,” Theo said. “Anything.”
“Stop by here more often, will you? You cheer me up.”
“You got it,” Theo said.
“And keep giving me those kind words. They make a difference. It’s hard to believe, but I actually feel better now.”
“Good,” Theo said happily. “See you soon, then. Maybe we’ll be able to take a walk one of these days.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised,” said Marj.
D
uring his fourth week of workouts, Theo ran a full mile on the track without a stop. He ran it in about ten and a half minutes.
After his final stretches, he did something else he’d never done: he touched his toes without bending his knees. A five-K
run was looking more and more possible.
Theo had gotten new running shoes, the first pair of actual running shoes he’d ever owned. They made a difference. They were
light, and his feet and ankles felt better when he used them. His parents celebrated his achievement by taking him out to
dinner.