The Strength of the Hare

By: JoJo Ball

Doing pull ups in my door frame is

my perfect way of giving my brain a rest.

Whenever I’m feeling stressed my pull up

bar is there to ease the strain of study.

It makes me reminisce about the bright,

sunny days at the park where my dad,

my sister and I would play catch

and see who could do the most pull ups

before we started our venture back home.

I’ll never forget the day my sister

beat me in our traditional pull up

contest. I’ve never been so embarrassed.

How could a little girl do more pull ups

than me, her older brother? That was

also the day my uncle jokingly

referred to her as his favorite nephew.

I wanted to hate her but I couldn’t.

It motivated me more than the hare

motivates dogs to run around a track.

She was my hare and my track was that bar.

I still think about that unfortunate

day every time I go to the gym.

My competitive nature won’t ever

let me forget the time my little sister

was stronger than me. Even though today

I do twice as many pull ups as her,

now my hare is me and my track is infinite.