Paul Fantozzi on Resiliency
I believe that getting lost is more important than knowing the way. Getting lost might seem scary and a terrible thing. But you do not know yourself, or what you can do, until you realize that you are lost. When you are lost, you are forced to push yourself to your fullest potential. I learned this during my sophomore cross country season. And it taught me the value of being resilient.
For those of you who have the pleasure of never running cross country, you should know a few things. First and foremost, congratulations on never running cross country-- it is really hard. Due to the difficulty of cross country, it seems like most people share in the pain of the sport. In fact, they bond over it.
On top of that, during your first year of running, you know none of the seniors or juniors on the team. So, it can be hard to find your place on the team. I had some friends who had convinced me to join the team. But they were both way better than I was since they had already ran in previous years. However, by the end of the first meet, I had surprised myself. I gained a reputation and found out how to fit in.
I was Paul Fantozzi: the best four-mile runner on the team.
For those of you who have the pleasure of never running cross country, you should know a few things. First and foremost, congratulations on never running cross country-- it is really hard. Due to the difficulty of cross country, it seems like most people share in the pain of the sport. In fact, they bond over it.
On top of that, during your first year of running, you know none of the seniors or juniors on the team. So, it can be hard to find your place on the team. I had some friends who had convinced me to join the team. But they were both way better than I was since they had already ran in previous years. However, by the end of the first meet, I had surprised myself. I gained a reputation and found out how to fit in.
I was Paul Fantozzi: the best four-mile runner on the team.
In cross country, everyone above freshman year runs varsity during regular season meets. This meant that I was running my first meet ever with a bunch of grown men who stormed out in front of me like it was the Olympics.
I remember one of my first varsity meets in particular. I had also never ran the course before. Luckily for me, I was not alone for the first two loops of the course. The same could not be said for the last loop, lovingly named “the wilderness.” The wilderness makes up around one mile of the course. It is made of crisscrossing trails and paths in the woods. During this time, the boy I was running with started walking. I eventually lost sight of him and was alone in the woods.
I tried desperately to remember the path we had taken through the wilderness during warm-ups. Eventually I realized that I was very lost. I ran along random paths and trails. Before the race, I had made two goals for myself; do not finish last, and run the entire course.
As I continued onward, it seemed increasingly likely that I would fail at both. At this point, it would have been so easy to just stop and admit I had gotten lost and was not going to finish the race. But, even so, so I kept going. This finally paid off when I found the light at the end of the tunnel-- or trees in this case.
When I came out of the wilderness, I was in the middle of the second loop, still far from the finish line. But, at least I knew where I was. I went on to finish the race and was handed a number showing what place I had come in. It wasn’t good. But, I had not stopped running the whole time. Another amazing thing happened too. A few of the other boys from the opposing team-- those who I had passed earlier-- came running across the finish line.
I had achieved both goals and had gotten an extra mile’s workout in as well.
Coach Catano was not very happy to find out what had happened during my oddly long third lap. But, the other kids on the team found it hilarious. I had found my place on the team and for the first time felt like a member of the CM cross country team. Getting lost might seem like the end, but it is when you truly find out who you are. During that race I learned more about myself than I ever expected to.
That was not my first time being lost and it certainly will not be my last. But, I am excited to see where getting lost brings me because I know that I will be resilient enough to handle it.
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CM prepares students for the rigors of college and beyond. While here, boys embark on service-learning opportunities, leadership development, and character formation programs inspiring them to become confident, courageous young men motivated to do good in the world.
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Catholic Memorial
Catholic Memorial
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Catholic Memorial, the Christian Brothers School of Boston, prepares boys for college, manhood and a world full of unknown challenges, ambiguity and complex problems and the importance of relationships.
