Sam Kennel
I Believe in Newton’s Third Law
I believe in Newton’s third law. I believe that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Not only is my belief backed by oodles of scientific research and experimental data, but I’ve seen Newton’s third law in action. Many times. With my own eyes. It’s not as much a belief as it is a fact; simply, an aspect of life to accept.
I’ve seen it on the playground. I’ve seen it on the road. As I’ve aged, matured, and changed, this law has remained constant, perpetually apart of my life.
Let me take you back to the playground. I was nine years old. My grade, fourth. My height, five foot, six inches. I wasn’t an especially tall fourth grader, but what I lacked in height I made up for on the kickball field. I was the kid you wanted on your team, the first pick, the hardest kicker, the fastest runner. My fourth grade class got along for the most part, and we didn’t really have any problems, except for this kid named Shawn. Shawn was the nastiest judgemental fourth-grader you can imagine. (Shawn wasn’t really this bad, but I’m villainizing him for the sake of this story.) When someone struck out on the field, Shawn would laugh and point fingers. If someone missed a catch, Shawn always had a few words to say about it, loudly. One particular kickball game stands out from the others, one where Shawn made a poor girl cry after causing the third out for their team, one where I had the greatest kick of my kickball career, and one where I saw Newton’s third law in action.
I was up to kick, Shawn set to roll the ball to me, the girl he had just harassed leaving the field in a trail of tears. I felt something hot inside of my chest when I saw the girl crying, a feeling the world was unright, the scales unequal. I decided I would kick a home run in honor of the girl, but after Shawn smugly rolled the ball to me, I kicked something much, much greater than a homerun. I kicked a line drive, straight from my foot to Shawn’s nose, and he fell backwards, feet fluttering, mouth sputtering, voice stuttering. When I saw the blood begin to trickle from Shawn’s nose, and the beginnings of a smile forming at the corners of the once crying girl, I knew then that the world had a system in place, a way for wrongs to be righted. I knew then that Newton’s third law existed, and that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
To Read more of Sam's work, please visit his website.
I Believe in Newton’s Third Law
I believe in Newton’s third law. I believe that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Not only is my belief backed by oodles of scientific research and experimental data, but I’ve seen Newton’s third law in action. Many times. With my own eyes. It’s not as much a belief as it is a fact; simply, an aspect of life to accept.
I’ve seen it on the playground. I’ve seen it on the road. As I’ve aged, matured, and changed, this law has remained constant, perpetually apart of my life.
Let me take you back to the playground. I was nine years old. My grade, fourth. My height, five foot, six inches. I wasn’t an especially tall fourth grader, but what I lacked in height I made up for on the kickball field. I was the kid you wanted on your team, the first pick, the hardest kicker, the fastest runner. My fourth grade class got along for the most part, and we didn’t really have any problems, except for this kid named Shawn. Shawn was the nastiest judgemental fourth-grader you can imagine. (Shawn wasn’t really this bad, but I’m villainizing him for the sake of this story.) When someone struck out on the field, Shawn would laugh and point fingers. If someone missed a catch, Shawn always had a few words to say about it, loudly. One particular kickball game stands out from the others, one where Shawn made a poor girl cry after causing the third out for their team, one where I had the greatest kick of my kickball career, and one where I saw Newton’s third law in action.
I was up to kick, Shawn set to roll the ball to me, the girl he had just harassed leaving the field in a trail of tears. I felt something hot inside of my chest when I saw the girl crying, a feeling the world was unright, the scales unequal. I decided I would kick a home run in honor of the girl, but after Shawn smugly rolled the ball to me, I kicked something much, much greater than a homerun. I kicked a line drive, straight from my foot to Shawn’s nose, and he fell backwards, feet fluttering, mouth sputtering, voice stuttering. When I saw the blood begin to trickle from Shawn’s nose, and the beginnings of a smile forming at the corners of the once crying girl, I knew then that the world had a system in place, a way for wrongs to be righted. I knew then that Newton’s third law existed, and that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
To Read more of Sam's work, please visit his website.