But once Mr. Bannister ran the mile in three minutes
and fifty-nine point four seconds, other people broke the record because
now they knew it was possible after all. They had never really tried
hard enough before that, because they simply did not believe. This just
shows that you can do anything you set your mind to do as long as you
believe it's possible. Let me recite a poem I heard once on my Public
Television channel. This poem, if my memory banks serve me right, is by
a gentleman by the name of C.W. Longenecker:
_The Victor_
_If you think you are beaten, you are.
If you like to win but think you can't,
Its almost a cinch you won't
If you think you'll lose, you're lost.
For out in the world we find
Success begins with a fellow's will.
It's all in the state of wind.
If you think you are outclassed, you are.
You've got to think high to rise.
You can ever win a prize.
Life's battles don't always go
To the stronger or faster man.
But sooner or later, the man who wins.
Is the one who thinks he can._"
[Illustration]
"That's very inspirational," said Graham. "I must remember that. But
doesn't it apply equally to girls?"
"Oh, of course!" the TV responded. "But the poem was written a long time
ago, before non-specific gender language was in vogue.
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