The kids…
Every Monday of the middle eight weeks of the school term, I head to Shalom Catholic College to do an after school Cross Country program with the kids who decide to sign up. More often than not it is the same eight to fifteen kids which is rad. They run some efforts on the track one week and the alternate week I run out around the suburbs/bush with them, taking it easy but racking up a few k’s, chatting, laughing and telling tales. Its a great schedule offered by the school with a range of activities/sports for the kids to take part in.
I have been involved in this Monday afternoon fun for a number of years now…maybe five or six? Each term I get asked back and I am stoked each week to get to go and hang with the kids. It is easy these days to get disillusioned with the state of affairs in relation to young people. Bad attitudes, entitlement, laziness etc…. however, at the start of each week I get NONE of this. The kids who attend are regulars (some from the beginning of their high schooling) with a few new ones rolling in each term. They are, in a word, AMAZING!
At the start of each term, I lay out the ground rules and let the old heads and new ones know, I only have two rules. They don’t have to be the best or fastest, but they DO have to give their all and they have to have fun. As long as they do these two things, I am happy, both of which occur 98% of the time.
Each week, I leave my encounters with these kids uplifted, encouraged and stoked to have got to share some time with them. A number of them I have grown a trusting, lovely relationship with (also with quite a few of the parents) and it is an absolute honor to have the privileged to have a little input into their lives. They restore my faith in young people and the next generation coming up. All the kids who attend should hold their heads high and be proud of who they are and who they are becoming. High School is a treacherous place and can be filled with angst. These kids have risen above this and I KNOW will achieve incredible things in their futures.
Like all, I at times get complacence about the impact I can have on others and particularly the power of mt words. I do my very best not to be complacent of a Monday afternoon and only provide uplifting affirmations. This doesn’t mean I am easy on them (I’m not at times!) but I do try to always gauge the feelings of each kid on the day, how much they need pushing and when they need comfort and some encouraging. The kids give their best and they deserve my best. However long I am asked back, I will continue to show up, be available for the young ones and do my all to be a positive influence in their young lives.
From the bottom of my heart kids, thank you. Thank you for teaching me and encouraging me more than you know. Thank you for your enthusiasm for life and running, your million random questions, playful smack talk and burying yourself when completing sessions because you know the discipline gained through sport (particularly running) flows onto all areas of your life in every positive way. You all make me hopeful for tomorrow. Much love. Consistency + Commitment.