Paul’s Autographs

It was a warm, spring day with sunshine and a light breeze. A perfect day for southwest Kansas. I was at the Ford County annual track meet in Ford, Kansas. I was a 7th grader representing the Wilroads Gardens school. But at the moment I was feeling somewhat aimless and lost amid the busyness of all the other athletes and coaches and teachers milling about on the field.

 

I had just participated in my one event; the shot put. I placed and my coach had a ribbon to show for my effort. A white ribbon with a ‘4th’ printed on it in gold letters. I don’t remember how many other athletes I competed against but I know there were a couple of boys looking more disappointed than me. And only four of us got a ribbons.

I didn’t really see myself as a shot putter, you see. I wanted to think I was good at something more exciting like a high jumping or maybe even a pole vaulter. But with my tall, gangly body and big feet the coach said he was sure that the shot put was my event. “You’ll do fine, Paul,” he told me with a smile, writing on his clipboard. “Besides,” he added, “I don’t have anyone else.”

And with that I was signed up to put the shot. My friends were still competing in relay races and the hurdles so I wandered about until I saw our school bus parked in the back of the parking lot. Maybe I’ll go in there and eat my potato chips, I thought to myself. I already ate my Mom’s dried beef sandwich, and my banana and sipped half my soda.

The door to the bus was open and some of the windows were down. I climbed up the familiar bus steps and went to the seat I sat on every morning and evening going to and from school.

“Hi, Paul!” a girl’s friendly voice startled me.

I turned around and smiling timidly at me sat the new girl in school. She was a year younger than me and her Dad was the new custodian/bus driver/maintenance man. Sometimes he teased me and made me laugh and I liked him. But I had never talked to his daughter before. She wore fashionable clothes and had a modern haircut. She seemed nice, and that was all I knew about her. I wasn’t even sure of her name. I didn’t know how she knew my name.

“Hi,” I said, smiling back but feeling sheepish as I tried to look about for her Dad, just in case.

“I saw you throw that heavy ball thing,” She said encouragingly. “You did good!”

“Well,” I shrugged. “Fourth place is all.”

Her eyes crinkled as she smiled. “You got a ribbon! I didn’t place in the broad jump or the sack race. I think I was last in both.” Then she laughed and I laughed with her as I started to relax. Just a little.

“I thought I’d  eat my potato chips on the bus,” I said. “Did you want any?”

“Sure,” She said. Her eyes showed a little bit of embarrassment. “I didn’t know where else to go. So I came up on the bus.” She said looking out the window.

I hadn’t thought of it before but she hadn’t been in our school that long and  probably wasn’t feeling like she fit in yet. I decided I ought to be friendly, even though my shyness was arguing otherwise.

“Yeah. I’m all through with my one event and I didn’t know where to go either.”  I said. She looked relieved. “The other guys are still doing the rest of their events. But I think the track meet is almost over.” I opened the plastic bag Mom put some potato chips in and offered it to her, trying to act like it was no big deal.

She took one and began to chew. She was kind of pretty, I thought. But she was in my younger brother’s class so I thought of her like a younger sister.

There was a couple awkward moments of silence and crunching.

“Hey, Paul. Did you ever play autograph?” She asked me hesitantly as I took another potato chip and shook my head. “It’d be fun.” She said sounding hopeful.

“What do I do?” I asked as I thought it must be a short game. I’d sign my name and she’d sign hers, and then what.

“Well, I’ll show you.” She said as she opened up her bag and pulled out a small tablet and pen. She flipped a couple pages and frowned as she looked for a blank page.

“Here we go.” She said. “First I’ll give you my autograph, then you give me yours.”

“Oh.” I said as she wrote her name. I read upside down in neat cursive, Valerie.” Then she turned the page and handed me the tablet.

“Okay.” I wrote, Paul, as neatly as I could on the next page. When I handed it back she read it with a smile and turned back to the first page.

“Now, what other autograph would you like?” Valerie asked me. I wondered if this was legal, signing other people’s names.

“Mmm, how about Petula Clark?” It was the only name that came to mind.

“Okay.” Valerie wrote out the singer’s name in her nice cursive and then handed me the tablet. “And I’d like to have Ed Sullivan.”

Oh, I thought maybe it’s just talking about famous people as I wrote what I thought Ed’s autograph would look like. I squiggled the letters a bit.

Valerie giggled when she saw it. “Now who for you?”

“Betsy Ross!” I said.

And she giggled again.

And we went back and forth for a little while, giggling and writing names and talking about the school until some of the other kids started climbing up on the bus to finish their lunches. I had had fun with Valerie but then I thought she was probably too new to know I wasn’t very popular. And when the popular girls from my grade climbed in the bus and saw me and rolled their eyes, Valerie seemed to stiffen a little.

Then I thought maybe she was just being kind and accepting of me like I was to her and that really she was just a nice person.

Valerie avoided looking at the popular girls as we talked quietly. But when another girl, Deana, from her class sat down behind her, she turned around and started talking to her. I liked her. Deana nodded at me shyly when we glanced at each other at the same time. Suddenly Valerie turned back towards me with a smile, “Here’s your autographs, Paul. Thanks for sitting with me. It was fun.” She tore out a few pages of her tablet and handed me the autographs she wrote.

I nodded as I took the sheets of papers with her handwriting on them and watched Valerie move to the seat with her girlfriend. They started talking and laughing and I was glad for Valerie. I didn’t dare look at the popular girls from my class but I could feel their eyes on me. Feeling self-conscious I folded my ‘autographs’ and stuffed them into my pants pocket.

Soon the bus was full of kids and coaches and teachers and Valerie’s Dad started it up and began driving back to our school.

My friend, Gary sat down by me and asked, “How did you do in the shot put, Paul?”

“Fourth place is all.” I said with a shrug.

“Hey that’s what I did in the hurdles. Way to go.” We both laughed.

I heard Valerie’s laugh from a couple seats behind us and suddenly I didn’t feel
so lost and aimless anymore.

Be kind and tenderhearted to one another,
Ephesians 4.32a

clothe yourselves with hearts of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.
Colossians 3.12b

“Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!

Romans 12.16