I live across the road and a few blocks east from the Foothills Stadium where high school track meets happen in June. As I was walking today, I was listening to the different sounds of the birds at they chattered back and forth. I was also wondering what sound was missing. It was the sound of the announcer at the track meets, since those have been cancelled for this year because of COVID-19. I can always hear those sounds in early June, all the way from the competitions to my house.
For as many children as Doral had, that is the number of times he was out teaching us how to compete in track: broad jump, high jump, discus, sprints, and how to pass the baton in a relay.
When spring came we began to practise in earnest with him.
He would have one of us borrow a discus from the school athletic department for the evening.
That is how I learned how to hold the discus -- with him and he was careful that I aimed toward the back field and not at the house.
That field behind our house? Who has a meadow for a backyard in the middle of the city?
We did.
How many crocus picking parties were held out there? How many pussy willows brought into the house? How many stems of lady fingers did I gather in that field. And best of all, during the late summer nights, bottle in hand, I could chase the elusive fireflies, hoping just once to fill my one of mother’s mason jars with enough fireflies that I could read by them for the rest of the evening in bed.
Who can’t remember being taken to the meadow behind the house and having Doral show them the correct form for the discus, those warm up swings, and then taking a few tries with a discus we had brought home from school.
A discus is one piece of athletic equipment Doral didn’t own, but he knew enough to have us borrow one from the school so we could practice at home.
Arta
(#7 of 15, to be continued)
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| Front Row LtoR: Darla, Doral Back Row LtoR: Moiya, Bonnie Edna Rae, Arta, Wyona Doral taught all of us how to throw that discus |
When spring came we began to practise in earnest with him.
He would have one of us borrow a discus from the school athletic department for the evening.
That is how I learned how to hold the discus -- with him and he was careful that I aimed toward the back field and not at the house.
That field behind our house? Who has a meadow for a backyard in the middle of the city?
We did.
How many crocus picking parties were held out there? How many pussy willows brought into the house? How many stems of lady fingers did I gather in that field. And best of all, during the late summer nights, bottle in hand, I could chase the elusive fireflies, hoping just once to fill my one of mother’s mason jars with enough fireflies that I could read by them for the rest of the evening in bed.
Who can’t remember being taken to the meadow behind the house and having Doral show them the correct form for the discus, those warm up swings, and then taking a few tries with a discus we had brought home from school.
A discus is one piece of athletic equipment Doral didn’t own, but he knew enough to have us borrow one from the school so we could practice at home.
Arta
(#7 of 15, to be continued)
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