Yesterday I was at my son’s track meet and it was thrilling. The news media is constantly bombarding us with stories about how out of shape and overweight American teens are, or about crime and drinking, or about hazing in schools. But what I saw yesterday was a group of motivated kids from three different Oakland/SF Bay Area high schools that were in tremendous condition and competing enthusiastically and fairly. The thing that struck me the most was the way that kids from different high schools would still cheer on kids from the opposing schools during races and events. It just wasn’t about winning.

Another thing that impressed me were the kids that were not going to win a race but gave it all they had. Maybe it was the 100 yard dash where the kid was way behind, or the two-mile run where the last girl had been lapped by the leaders, but the last kids did not quit. Even though it was hard, painful even, they ran it out, they finished their races. Sometimes they were limping or struggling for breath – in my son’s case he finished his race and pulled off his spikes and had blisters that were torn and bleeding  – but they finished their respective races. Even with bleeding feet, my son still put his spikes back on and ran in a 4×400 relay because his team needed him.

As I watched these athletes and thought about their dedication to finishing a race that they started, I thought about my writing and how I could apply this lesson. Lately I have struggled with a novel that took me more than a year to write. I sent it to my editor and she sent it back after two months with 30 pages of suggested changes and edits. Reading over her notes was disheartening to say the least. In fact, I seriously have considered abandoning the novel and just starting a new book. That seemed easier. But there is something to be gained from staying in the race and finishing. That is what I took away from the kids at the back of the pack in those races. It might be hard but keep running. You learn something from every race you run, even the difficult ones where you get lapped and are dead last.