Brothers. . .

"Ow!" ((groan)) "Oooo"

So today I learned the defensive stance today... or, I don't remember the name.

It's kina like the cha cha slide, but your continually stuck in a one way zone.

(Oh my poor legs!)

I have two brothers that play basketball on a team called the Patriots.
And they have to practice the defensive stance... or whatever.  So being the older sister (who thinks she can still beat her brothers), I challenged my brothers, fourteen and twelve respectively, to walk around the lake we live near and then do the defensive stance across the dam.
They agree.

We have a nice walk, bit chilly but it's fine.  Getting to the dam we take five minutes deciding which two will face and who will lag behind.  Again since I'm the older sister, it is decided that the 14yr. old and I will face off with 12yr. old right after.  Also, we determine that everyone has to agree before for a break if we will want one.

"I'll be the motivator/coach," says Caleb (14yr. old)
"I'm the assistant then," says Josiah (12yr. old)
"That leaves me to be the Caleb BEAST!" I tease.

We're off!  And I'm doing great!  Since I am shorter I don't have to bend my knees as far as the boys, and that has me at the advantage.  Caleb, is yelling in his mock coach voice something about going lower, and toothfairy, but I didn't really hear him.
One third of the way down Caleb asks for a break,  Josiah, who can long distance run/swim/climb/eat/jump, of course said NO.  At this point I approve greatly of the break and make my intentions known.  They boys glance at each other and I'm sure I see an evil glint!
"No breaks" they say in unison, like they are Siamese twins or something.
So they travel faster and (in need of a break too) decide to just continue on leaving poor jelly legs... er jolly laevoduction, to "buck up."

At about two thirds of the way, I wish I could say still had a cheerful spirit, but I had giving the stance up and was skipping girlishly and breathing heavily.  Who had put a cheese grater down my throat???
"B B Br rake!" grated the air in my throat.
"No!" came the collaborated reply.

They reached the end of the dam and waited for me.
Josiah, had long past me up and I was now the dragging one, pulling in two hundred yards after them.
"Huuhhh," came a puff of grated exhaustion.
"Lets jog to the rock and sprint home from there!" said the hardly-out-of-breath Caleb.
WHAT??? ARE YOU KIDDING??? I wanted to scream, but the grater was moving on to potatoes and hard carrots and was trying to make vegetable soup!
"Um, I think we better walk," said Josiah taking one look at me.
He wrapped my jacket arm (somehow void of my arm) around his shoulder and was literally dragging me.
"Little help Caleb?" he asked.
Caleb grabbed my other jacket sleeve and thus they dragged me to the rock.
I'll have you know that didn't help the extreme chef show going on in my esophagus, the zipper was all up in my throat.

Once at the rock we took our places, got ready, and they were off.  I'd like to say at this time I'd regained my strength, but all I'd retained was a bit of pride.  I ranish walked in a daze until reaching the property line, then collapsed on the sweet sweet grass.  The grass doesn't care if I can't run.  Sweet grass. Through misty vision I picked out the boys playing sticks or something high above.
"A little help up please?" I asked the stick boys.
"Sure, poor wittle Stephyyy," Josiah said like I was tweety.
He grabbed my arms and tried, but I was dead weight and he's only twelve.
"Caleb..." I moaned (but glad the chef's salad was done).
"Get off the ground you Blue Knight!" Caleb said with disdain.
Just then the neighbor's grey cat came and sat on me, like I was some piece of lawn furniture!
"Guys, little help here?" I groaned.
"Look, it's the neighbor's cat!" announced Caleb.
Yes, Caleb I know.  "Could you move it?" I asked. "Please?"

Caleb squatted down in the grass where I was prostrate.
"Aww, da wittle kitty likes you, here kitty kitty," he called to the cat.
"Get it off"I said with a mouthful of tail, yuck!
As if dying on the cold hard ground wasn't bad enough I would do so surrounded by my brothers playing sticks, WITH the cat.

They did eventually help me up and into the house, and after some toast and hot cocoa, I announced that I was ready to do it again with them. . . tomorrow.

Moral of the story: Don't think you can still challenge your younger brothers and live to see the next day.  I barely did.