Karate Countdown by Jake Maddox

Author:Jake Maddox
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: 9781434212009, 9781434214027, Fiction, Jake Maddox Sports Stories, Sports & Recreation/General, Sports & Recreation/Martial Arts, Social Issues/Emotions & Feelings, Social Issues/New Experience
Publisher: Capstone
Published: 2009-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

“What?” Kenny said. “That’s not fair!”

“Fair?” Sensei said. “Who said anything about fair? You will sit on the bench and look at the street through the window.”

Kenny clenched his fists. He felt his face getting hot.

“A bus stops in front of this school every ten minutes,” Sensei added. “You will watch the bus stop and count how many people get off.”

“Are you kidding me?” Kenny asked.

Sensei turned away. “Class, continue sparring, please!” he said. “The first round of the tournament is coming soon!”

Kenny was mad. He sat down on the bench and faced the window. Soon, the bus pulled up.

Well, this is boring, Kenny thought. He watched the people get off. First was an old lady. She took forever to walk down the steps.

“One,” Kenny muttered.

Three high school girls stepped off after the old lady. “Two, three, and four,” Kenny said.

Then the bus doors closed. It drove off.

“Four, Sensei!” Kenny called out. He turned to face the classroom again.

“Face the window, Mr. Parks,” Sensei replied. “Don’t call out the numbers. You will tell me later.”

Kenny rolled his eyes and turned back to the window. There wasn’t much to look at outside. It was just a boring street in his boring city.

Across the street was a car dealership. Next to that was a restaurant, and next to that was a grocery store. None of them were even open yet this early on a Saturday.

Kenny could hear the other students sparring behind him. “Hiya!” they cried out as they sparred.

Kenny started to get angry. He hated listening to them spar while he just sat there. Just then, the bus pulled up again. The door hissed when it opened.

A big man stepped carefully off the bus. He was carrying a paper bag. “One,” Kenny muttered to himself.

A young mother followed. She was pulling her daughter behind her. The little girl was crying.

“Two, three,” Kenny said. He took a deep breath.

After the mother and child, two kids about Kenny’s age hopped off the bus. They were laughing and horsing around.

“Four and five,” Kenny said. He took another deep breath.

Finally, a middle-aged woman stepped out, talking on her cell phone. Then the doors closed.

“Six,” Kenny said. “Plus the four from before . . . that makes ten.”

The morning went on like that. Kenny watched the bus stop and counted the people getting off.

By the time class was over, he didn’t even notice the students behind him, even with all the yelling.

After dismissing the rest of the class, Sensei went over to Kenny. “So, Mr. Parks,” Sensei said. “What did you learn today?”

“Well,” Kenny said, “I counted forty-two people total.”

Sensei smiled. “The number does not matter,” he said.

“It doesn’t?” Kenny asked. “Then why did I have to count everyone?”

“It’s not the answer you needed,” Sensei replied. “It’s the counting itself.”

“I don’t get it,” Kenny said.

“Did you feel calmer as you counted?” Sensei asked.

“Yes,” Kenny admitted.

“Then that’s what you needed,” Sensei said.

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