I lived in Philadelphia for seven years and loved it. So, when I saw that Rocky was on the other day, I could not help but watch it. I was especially excited to see the scene when Rocky triumphantly ran through the city and bound victoriously up the Art Museum steps. This had to have been nearly the hundredth time that I watched this film, so I was not expecting to be struck by something new or different. Of course, I was.

Soon after Rocky agrees to fight Apollo Creed, he is confronted in his South Philly apartment by Micky, and at that moment, Rocky begins his ascent from journeyman boxer and mafia muscle to heavyweight champion of the world. The next scene is one of the famous city jogging scenes, but unlike the triumphant bounds up the Art Museum stairs, Rocky is laboring and his anguish shows in his face and his every stride.

This scene had never really impacted me, but this time, I was struck by the way that this scene depicts the pain it takes to make a change. While we all aspire to jump in the air triumphantly, as Rocky eventually does after working extremely hard – and believe me, everyday hundreds of people, myself and my family included, recreate that scene on those steps. I would guess that the first scene, of simply getting out and going, should be the real triumph. Few people publicly mimic Rocky lumbering up the steps and wincing from a side stitch, but that is the hardest part to overcome.

At The Beech Hill School, we hold an all-school road race twice a year. We just held our fall race this past week. For me, I was wincing in pain throughout, as I have been nursing a sore glut for several weeks. Many of the students too, could have done better. And that is why we run twice – so that we can set a goal of improvement and work steadily toward it in the spring race.

Whether running, training for a heavy weight boxing match, or simply trying to understand how to divide fractions, one must start somewhere. Getting out there – engaging – is the real work of a champion!