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Stories from Around the World
Heart and Soul: Giving it Your All for the Alma Mater
April 11, 2019
By the storytellers of The Huntington
Once upon a time...
It's the Olympics in 1892 in San Francisco. They are finishing up the 1-mile relay.
It's not raining yet - it must be awfully cold there.
There could be snow from earlier - it could be chalk.
The winner is Mike Cunningham, Sr. He has a little boy who is 5 years old (Mike Jr.).
He has been running a long time, since he was a little boy.
He has a boo-boo on his right knee - he must've fallen during the race.
Mike loves running, he's exhilarated by it, it's worth winning.
I think he does some athletic stuff with younger kids.
He's a soccer player - maybe that's where he got his bum knee.
Mike has done more Olympics in the past, he's a professional.
He might have a wife - Mary. She thinks running and athletics are a waste of time and that somebody might get hurt.
She's a full time mom.
The one next to him is Justin Bieber. He says, "Oh, shucks," or maybe something more colorful that we can't say here.
He looks like he's dragging, he's more out of breath than the guy in front of him.
Justin's also been running all his life: he walked really early in life.
It is his first Olympics.
The two guys on the side: one of them is the timer - he has a watch in one hand and writes on a little piece of paper in the other.
The other guy is a judge: he keeps the timer honest and tells who won.
They can't live on that - I'd make them useful around the campus.
The runners are seniors at Holy Cross College.
First, they had to warm up: they jogged around, they stretched, they had a little water first, hit the head (bathroom).
Justin Bieber was winning the race the whole time and then Mike Cunningham won the race at the last minute!
He gets the gold medal - they just get medals 'cause they're still amateurs.
They could've just gotten a ribbon.
It doesn't look like there's a whole lot of people there.
After the race, they go in and have a drink of water. Mike has his boo-boo looked at: it's from the cinders on the track which were dirty. He's gonna get ready for the awards ceremony immediately after the race.
Justin's kids are gonna meet him at the end of the race. They're young, they're with their mother.
After the ceremony, they're gonna have a little luncheon for all the participants and their families.
Years later, Mike is an accountant to get more money. It's a better paying job, but he continues to run in his free time.
He's organized a running club at work: they all go out at noon time and run.
They all make sure they have a shower before they come in - they have deodorant at no extra cost!
Then they have armpit inspection - they all line up.
Smelling salts are next door for when they all faint. Then they call the paramedics to come get them.
Justin is still running. He works in the same office as Mike and he's the bookkeeper.
They both still work with kids.
They look alike: they might be twins or cousins. They have the same nose. They could be brothers.
They're very positive about their lives.
They are thinking of having a rematch!
And they all lived happily ever after!
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Image Credits: From the National Library of Australia Archives
