Within the bell lap in the Olympic 1500 metres - the so-called blue ribbon event - there lies about one minute in which the most iconic dramas in track and field have been played out. It is lap that calls for great intelligence, incredible coolness and supreme strategizing. It also calls for finding that something deep within oneself that transcends the rational, explainable realm of the everyday world.
With the bell lap for Nick Willis last night, things look rather dicy. Nick is second to last. Yet with intelligence, coolness and strategizing, he gets a bronze medal. Only those who have run this distance themselves truly understand what a splendid piece of work on the hoof this is.
What is so likeable about Nick is the sense of humility he brings to his performance. He presents himself as a thoughtful Christian man who is not intent on proselytizing or Bible bashing anyone. He simply shares where his strength lies - his God. Beyond that, his legs, his running, his discipline and his decency signpost that transcendent reality that has become for him the bedrock of his life.
So back to Kipling's words:
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And--which is more--you'll be a Man, my son!
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