Last week, my 2 older daughters participated in our School District’s track meet. I have to start by saying that I was so proud of my girls for doing their best. They both ended up doing extremely well. My 11 year old daughter finished 3rd overall (in the grade 5-6 age group) and my 8 year old daughter finished 4th overall (in the grade 3-4 age group). This is not what this post is about though (but I had to share 
An incident happened during one of the events that really touched my heart. It was during the 400 meter race for the grade 3 and 4 boys. The race started off with several kids fighting for the lead and this continued on for the rest of the race.
Most of the crowd’s attention was on the kids in the lead. So when the the leaders crossed the finished line most people lost interest in watching the rest of the boys finish. One by one the rest of the boys crossed the finished line but there was still one little guy who was way behind everyone else and he began to lose heart when he saw that everyone was done except him.
With about 50 meters left in the race he just stopped and started walking toward the finish line. I am sure he was thinking “What is the point in even finishing? Nobody cares.” This is where something beautiful happened. Several of the boys from his school came alongside him and started encouraging him to run.
It was so awesome watching this little boy’s demeanour change from dejected to excited as his friends cheered him on and ran the rest of the race with him. He ended up running as fast as he could the rest of the way. He may have finished last on the record sheet but he (and his friends) were first in my heart!
We need more people like these little boys in our world. We need more people who take the time to help those who are struggling. We need more people who are looking for opportunities to help those who are hurting. We need more people who will run alongside others and cheer them on!
Who can you run alongside of and cheer on today?
Kevin,
What a heart-warming story. This shows the true character of kids from families that have given their values to the next generation. Awesome!
Thanks so much for sharing this Kevin,
Val
My recent post When the Why is Big Enough…
Love that story! It's a great picture of the heart of Christ for sure.
Jay
My recent post Called to Live in Light
Love this story! I'm going to go run alongside some people in about 2 hours. I'm going to be volunteering at a nursing home. We all can find someone to run next to if we try!
This is a great story. Having a person to encourage and cheer you on is a tremendous blessing. And bravo to the boys who recognized that one of their own needed encouragement. I wonder how often we see someone in need but half-heatedly repeat some cliche phrases instead of cheering them on with the desire to life their spirits?
Thanks for sharing this Kevin. This story was very touching.
That's such a cool story Kevin! I love when this happens. It reminds me that maybe it's gonna be alright afterall.
I have four boys that ran from 7 grade through 12th grade it's a great sport! There was always a few that were left far behind the others, but just like you saw the team was not complete until everyone past the finish line. Great post!
Thanks for sharing
Debby
Excuse me – I have to get a tissue…Thanks, Kevin, for sharing this story. It brought tears to my eyes. What a wonderful bunch of guys! Can imagine what great husbands, fathers, citizens, employers they will grow up to be?
My recent post Do You Work For Free?
This is such a beautiful story. Love it. These kids still have so much love in themselves. The way it was supposed to be. This a lesson for us.
Thanks Kevin for sharing that. We can all learn something from our kids. That helping attitude is so very important. I trust that the kids parents that were cheering him on commended them for what they did.
Michael
It definitely warmed my heart!
Thanks for sharing Val!
It sure is!
Thanks for sharing Jay!
My recent post How can I forgive when it hurts so much?
Good on you Duane! Keep running alongside those that you come across!
My recent post How can I forgive when it hurts so much?
It helps inspire and spur me on too!
My recent post How can I forgive when it hurts so much?
Thanks for sharing your thoughts Debby!
My recent post How can I forgive when it hurts so much?
There is definitely some great potential in those boys!
Thanks for sharing Teresa!
My recent post How can I forgive when it hurts so much?
It definitely is a lesson for us all!
Thanks for sharing Ani!
My recent post How can I forgive when it hurts so much?
We can for sure learn something from these boys!
Thanks for sharing Michael!
My recent post How can I forgive when it hurts so much?