Competition

Yesterday, I told the boys that one of their friends ran a mile – which was all they needed to hear.  Today they both ran a mile for the first time.

As part of our vigorous exercise program, they have been running once a week, working toward the goal of running a mile before the school-year ended.  Before today, they had each run 3/4 of a mile.  But they were losing their drive to make it to a mile.  It’s so much more fun to play soccer or to wrestle, which is what they do when they have finished running.

So I was a little surprised to see them keep running after they finished their third lap today.  I shouldn’t have been. I imagine that as soon as they heard their friend ran his first mile, they both knew they would attempt it today. Competition is a powerful force for these boys.

Many days that force makes our time together pretty miserable.  Today, it led to broad grins and lots of calm, focused work later in the day.  Tomorrow, I am going to tell them that their best friends won awards for respectful behavior and chore completion.