Milton Jacobi was 10 or...
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Milton Jacobi was 10 or 15 years older than I and he had graduated from a small state college. His major was athletics and math. He was agile, wiry, quick of step; he was skilled in wrestling, track, basketball and football. He had been his college's star quarterback as well as a first place winner in track events. I was among his students in our high school. Mr. Jacobi could lie on a big gym mat, flat down on his back and with one sudden and electric jab-of-body, he would be standing up straight. He showed us, in slow motion, what his muscles went through to do that. His legs would flash straight outward and his hands would stab upwards. And there he'd be, quick-as-a-wink, standing straight up in front of us. We watched him do the impossible. Even though he was more than 30 years of age, his body was yet supple, taut, responsive to his will in the gym and on the track. And he watched us in our efforts. Indeed, he watched us with expectation, so much expectation that we started to believe in ourselves. We came to believe that whatever Mr. Jacobi told us we could do, well, that's what we could do! Dozens of my friends did the impossible. -- Hoornstra
