Running Backwards

San Mateo

That's what these kids were doing this morning before their soccer game. I have always been fascinated by the concept of "backwards." What if everyone walked backwards?

If you remember the novel, Catch-22, by Joseph Heller, you probably will recall the character Dunbar, whose main goal in life was to try and postpone mortality for as long as possible.

Dunbar had the habit of walking backwards, which I believe was one of his strategies for living longer.

When I was a student at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, for some reason I decided to test out whether walking backwards like Dunbar could help me get into movie theaters for free.

It did, somewhat to my surprise, though I don't think it will have helped me escape either death or taxes, in the end.


This morning, sitting with my fellow soccer moms, watching our girls lose their final game of the season (their 0-5 record included being outscored 29-2) one of the guys said, "Look, here we are, it's a beautiful day, what do we have to complain about?"

True enough, and I don't think any of us were given to complaining in any event. Northern California is again engulfed in a heat wave. The temps reached 95 degrees in the Mission today; and even tonight, down here on the peninsula south of the City is was 85 at sundown.



Before heading south for the night, I watched my son's game at Franklin Square. This was a warm-up contest for the championship game, which will be played there two weeks hence.

I couldn't help feeling angry that my son was having to play injured due to an illegal and vicious foul last Saturday by a kid who has since been suspended by the league for his violent play and racist taunts. His knee is hurting very badly. Tonight he has it iced. Hopefully, he'll be ready for the championship game.

Although limping all through the game, he played very well.

It was a strange, tense game, as the field was ringed by police and undercover agents fearful of gang violence or other consequences from last week's horrible confrontations. I didn't even know the extent of the problem when I blogged about it last weekend.

Even kid's soccer isn't an innocent activity in the inner city. All kinds of pent-up emotions and unfulfilled parental dreams, damaged psyches and misdirected violence hovers over the poor end of town, where I live and where he plays.

It's a hot summer we are having. And there are things I don't like about this. I don't want to become the over-protective parent who tells his boy to avoid walking down certain streets because trouble may be lurking there.

I want all of the kids, even those who so offensively hurt my boy and others last weekend to continue to have the chance to develop fruitful and productive lives. But threats are threats, and the cops know best about that stuff.

Away from the City tonight, maybe I'll try walking backwards for a while. Maybe that can bring some comfort to the afflicted? Even if I am in no position to afflict the comfortable.

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