A Running Partner

9-18
I've found a running prodigy- Shaka- my 11 year old younger host brother- is absolutely amazing. Yesterday, I was running to the butiki (small shop) and he and my other two younger brothers came along. Do you think we can run all the way to the butiki? It was about a half a mile- they all did it with ease- and for Shaka, I didn't have to slow my normal pace.
Do you think we can run all the way home? Piece of cake. No we're not tired. No we're not done. We ended up running about 4 miles and he hardly broke sweat. The two younger ones actually did a pretty good job for their age as well.
I ahead already ran n the morning, but thought I would encourage the boys to do another 3ish for me. Afterwords, we went to the soccer field to do sprints. Shaka's got speed too! He never fell a step behind me- though I think he probably could have out sprinted me too, but he was either being polite or he does not yet realize his own speek because he barely lost his breath. We returned to the house, stretched, and I gave them some peanuts and water. Good workout boys.
"Aminata, let's go"- says Shaka
"Where?"
"Running."
He hadn't had enough- we did three more miles- passed by his girlfriend's house as always- and paused to do some pushups and lunges before returning back If it wasn't getting dark and we weren't eating soon, he would have kept going.
I'm going to the maket with you Saturday, he says. It's about 4 or 5 miles away. But I'm riding my bike there. He sayd "no problem, "I will run." As much as I want to see this boy run 10 miles, I'm going to spend the day there hanging out with my teammate Caroline, so I'd be better off without compan. I'm sure though, we'll be running a lot together. I wonder if there's any opprotunities for him to pursue his talents. If only I could find him a place to shine- I have fantasizes about trainning him for stardom. The only time he slows down is during the real rocky parts of the road- he has no shoes.

9=20
The next morning I woke up before my brothers and decided to run a few miles before they joined me. After about 2 miles, I met Shaka on the road. “Aminata, I’m coming to the market in Dio with you today.” I had planned on riding my bike the 5 miles to the bigger town to go to market and visit my teammate, Caroline, who works with a women’s shea butter organization there.
“You can’t Shaka because I’m riding my bike there.”
“That’s ok, I’ll run.”
“It’s really far”
“I know.”
“I’ll tell you what Shaka, let’s run to the market together right now.” I thought he could probably handle a 10 mile run, and then I could stop at Caroline’s house and make plans for the rest of the day. Shaka agreed, but then affirmed that he was going to come with me when I returned on my bike. He was basically telling me he wanted to put in a 20 mile day, but I figured that after the first trip to Dio, he’d be hot and tired enough to let me go on my own.
On the way over, Shaka told me he wanted to go to America with me to run and go to school. God, how much do I want to take you, I thought. And I gave my typical answer, “If you want to come to America, you have to learn English.” But here, I had the opportunity to teach. It took us 5 miles, but he got down “Hello my name is Shaka, how are you?” Returning to Dombilia, I think Shaka got a bit tired at mile 9- not as tired as me though, and I finally saw that this kid could certaintly outrun me when he comes to terms with his own speed. I washed, ate, and loaded my bike to return to the market. Slowly starting down the road, I noticed there he was, this skinny little 11 year old with cavities blackening his excited smile, following me. I stopped and put my hand on his shoulder: “Shaka- you really want to run to Dio again?”
“Yes.”
“You think you can?”
“Yes.” And you know what- I thought he could too.
“Alright, but if you get thristy, you tell me, because I have water in my bag.”
We stopped only once for water, and he was slowing down a bit as we pulled into the town the second time. I gave him some water and bought him some peanuts, but he needed no recovery. He was content and ready to help me do my shopping.
Caroline and I traversed the market- I didn’t buy as much as I want for fear of looking like Mrs. Moneybags in front of my little brother, who asked me to buy him clothes and stopped to gaze at the athletic shoes. It broke my heart to tell him I couldn’t buy him things right now, because then I would have to buy things for everyone. I can’t be playing favorites, but in truth, I definitely have a favorite.
Shaka is human- he was too tired to run back in the blazing sun of the afternoon, so he hopped on the back of my bike. I ran 12 miles today. This little 11year old ran 15. What am I going to do with him?