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Running With The Thing: by Guy Belleranti

Ramon was running with his sister Marie, who was exercising. Ramon kept saying he was trying to get away from "The Thing" but Marie couldn't see anything. Ramon insisted there were things behind him that were changing sizes. Marie stopped to question Ramon about what he saw. Tony, their neighbor, joined them on his bike and also couldn't see what Ramon was talking about at first. It turned out Ramon was seeing their shadows change sizes as they moved in the sunlight. Marie then decided to keep running to give their shadows some exercise too.

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671 views4 pages

Running With The Thing: by Guy Belleranti

Ramon was running with his sister Marie, who was exercising. Ramon kept saying he was trying to get away from "The Thing" but Marie couldn't see anything. Ramon insisted there were things behind him that were changing sizes. Marie stopped to question Ramon about what he saw. Tony, their neighbor, joined them on his bike and also couldn't see what Ramon was talking about at first. It turned out Ramon was seeing their shadows change sizes as they moved in the sunlight. Marie then decided to keep running to give their shadows some exercise too.

Uploaded by

Ana Conse
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Name :

Running with the Thing


by Guy Belleranti

Ramon shielded his eyes from the sun as


he puffed along the sidewalk beside his older
sister. “Marie, why are you running?”

“Exercise,” Marie gasped out. “Don’t you


know that…exercise…does the body…good?”

“Oh, I know…that,” Ramon said, equally


out of breath. “I just thought…maybe you were
trying…to get away from…The Thing.”

“The Thing?” Marie slowed from a run to a trot, and looked around. “Do you mean
that big kid back there?”

“No,” Ramon said.

“That lady walking a dog?”

“No,” Ramon repeated. “I mean The Thing. T-H-E and -T-H-I-N-G,” Ramon spelled.
“It’s right behind me.”

Marie slowed from a trot to a walk and looked again. “But, Ramon, there’s nothing
right behind you. No one, nobody and no Thing.”

“Is so,” Ramon declared.

“Okay,” Marie said. She stopped completely and put her hands on her hips. “Then
tell me what it looks like.”

“Sometimes it’s tall and sometimes it’s short,” Ramon said. “In fact, right now…
Wow!”

Ramon’s jaw dropped. “Now there’s two Things. Come on, Marie. We have to run

Printable Worksheets @ www.mathworksheets4kids.com


Name :

again.” He chugged forward on his short legs.

“Hey, Marie…Ramon!” Tony from next door swung his bike in along the curb.
"What’s with the fast feet? And why do you both keep popping looks behind
yourselves?”

“I’m exercising.” Marie panted.

“And I’m trying…to get…away…from the…Things,” Ramon said between gasps


for breath.

“Things?” Tony asked.

Marie made a face, and once again stopped running. “It’s just Ramon’s imagination.”

“Is not!” Ramon cried. “They’re there – you just aren’t looking right.” He spun around
and stuck out his right arm. “Look—now there are three Things.”

Marie and Tony looked.

“Where?” asked Tony.

“Yes,” said Marie. “Where?”

“Right there.” Ramon waved a finger, pointing as he counted. “One…two…three.”

Marie and Tony looked again.

“Oh!” Tony smiled. “Now I see them.”

Marie crossed her arms and sighed. “Tony, you can’t—” She blinked. Ramon and
Tony were right. There were three Things! Ramon’s shadow, Tony’s shadow and…her
own shadow.

“Come on,” she said. “Let’s run again, and give our Things some exercise!”

- Published by CharacterS Magazine in November 2003. Re-published by Stories Children in March 2008

Printable Worksheets @ www.mathworksheets4kids.com


Name :

Running with the Thing

1) Use the idiom ’jaw dropping’ in a sentence of your own.

2) Which answer best describes the way in which Marie reduced her speed while
exercising?
a) From a run to a trot and from a trot to a walk.

b) From a run to a walk and from a walk to a trot.

c) From a walk to a trot and from a trot to a run.

d) From a stroll to a walk and from a walk to a trot.

3) What things came to Marie’s mind when Ramon kept talking about ’The Thing’?

4) What was Tony’s first response when he heard Ramon talking about ’The Thing’?

5) Why do you think shadows keep changing sizes?

Printable Worksheets @ www.mathworksheets4kids.com


Name : Answer key

Running with the Thing

1) Use the idiom ’jaw dropping’ in a sentence of your own.

2) Which answer best describes the way in which Marie reduced her speed while
exercising?
a) From a run to a trot and from a trot to a walk.

b) From a run to a walk and from a walk to a trot.

c) From a walk to a trot and from a trot to a run.

d) From a stroll to a walk and from a walk to a trot.

3) What things came to Marie’s mind when Ramon kept talking about ’The Thing’?

The big kid back there and the lady walking a dog.

4) What was Tony’s first response when he heard Ramon talking about ’The Thing’?

Tony’s instant reaction was that the big thing was just Ramon’s imagination.

5) Why do you think shadows keep changing sizes?

The size of the shadow depends on the position of the sun in the sky.

Printable Worksheets @ www.mathworksheets4kids.com

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