Village Shepherd

"You coming?" Andy was putting on his trainers and was nearly ready to go.

James yawned. "What for? The race is five weeks away! I don't need to train all that time. I'll start in a week or two."

Andy shrugged and went out to start his pre-breakfast training run. He aimed to run two miles today, then increase half a mile a day. He reckoned he'd be up to ten miles easy by the time of the big race, especially if he put in some hours at the gym as well. It was all right for James. He was the best runner in the school, and strong with it. He played Rugby all winter, and was always fit. James would probably win the big race anyway, thought Andy, and all this training would be a waste of time. Still, he'd worked out a training schedule and promised himself he'd stick to it, so he might as well begin.

Andy found the first run quite a struggle. He wasn't much of a sports type. It was just that he fancied taking part in the big race with all those people. It looked exciting, and although he knew he hadn't a chance of winning, he looked forward to at least completing the race. Besides, everyone who finished got a medal, and he'd never won a medal for any sporting event.

But the training was hard going. James had seemed quite keen on the idea of training together, until the alarm clock had woken him that first morning and he'd realised how early it was. Then he'd turned over and gone back to sleep again, and Andy knew in his heart if he wanted to train, he'd have to train alone. But he'd found it increasingly difficult to get up so early, leaving James in bed. And it became very lonely, running by himself.

The worst time was when he was up to seven miles. His legs and back ached all day after that run, and he'd hardly been able to complete it, he was puffing and panting so much. He wondered then whether to give up. If he could hardly manage seven miles, how would he make ten? And just for some stupid medal! Was it worth all the hassle? And there was no-one to help, or to encourage him. Then he remembered his family and how proud they'd been when he told them about the race, and how they'd all sponsored him for the local hospital, and he gritted his teeth and went on running.

Mostly when he was running, Andy didn't meet anybody else. But when he was up to nine miles, he came across a man lying in a ditch. He wondered whether or not to stop. He didn't like to interrupt his rhythm, and the man was probably drunk. Then he thought ought to stop, for if the man had been lying there all night, he might need a doctor.

He ran over. The man was unconscious, but there was no smell of alcohol, and his leg was bent at a funny angle. Andy made sure the man was still breathing, then he ran a further mile to the nearest house and raised the alarm. The ambulance came within minutes, but it made Andy late for school.

The day of the big race dawned fine and clear. James and Andy started their run together, but James soon pulled ahead. Andy kept on running at his steady pace, and enjoyed being part of such a large crowd of runners. There was plenty of good-natured fun and humour, and he soon found himself running with a small group who all ran at about the same pace.

He finished the race in good time, and felt proud and pleased to receive his medal. To his surprise, he managed a slightly better time than James, who had run out of steam about half-way round.

But his biggest surprise came at the end of the award ceremony. He was called onto the platform by the race organiser and handed an envelope for the hospital. In it was a cheque for 1,000 pounds. Then the organiser announced to the assembled crowd that but for Andy, the race might have been cancelled altogether. He went on to explain that Mr Glover, the sponsor of the race and owner of Glover and Glover Sports Conglomerate, was a diabetic and when out for an early morning stroll, had fallen into a diabetic coma and rolled into a ditch. If Andy hadn't come along at the right time, and stopped to help him, he wouldn't be alive today.

Mr Glover was wheeled onto the platform in a wheelchair, his leg stuck out in front of him. He shook Andy's hand and thanked him in front of all those people, then told Andy that if he wanted it, there was a good job waiting for him in the firm after he left school.

James was a bit cross when it was all over. He couldn't believe Andy had beaten him. "Anyway," he said, "it was just luck, being there at the right time for that Mr Glover. And just luck that you finished ahead of me, too."

Andy laughed and shook his head. "Not luck," he said. "You have to be ready for surprises in this life. You never know when something's coming your way, so you've got to be trained and ready to deal with it. And you know something?" he added, "although I found the training really hard, and wanted to give up lots of times, I'm so glad I kept going. It was all well worth it in the end."

But James snorted, and turned over to go back to sleep.