By Jamie Kanter
Arizona Daily Wildcat
May 13, 1998

Lessons learned from Capture the Flag

Every once in a while, I see groups of kids wandering around campus with their teachers.

They seem awe-struck by the relative size of everything. The buildings are taller, the students are older, the recesses are longer.

A group of these students helped me out the other day. I had just completed a final and was about to buy that all-important cap and gown. Finals, graduation and the future weighed heavily upon my mind. Then I saw them.

There were about forty of them. Third-graders, I guessed. And what were these children doing while visiting such a fine institution of higher learning? They were playing Red Rover on the UA Mall. They called each other over to attempt to break through their human chain, delighted by the amount of room afforded their game by such a vast expanse of grass.

It pleased me to see such a display of complete innocence. They were content to be here, enjoying the moment as it happened. I stopped and watched and found that I enjoyed the moment, too. Perhaps children are more astute than I had reckoned.

They simply had fun.

It reminded me of a game that I used to play, Capture the Flag. For those of you unfamiliar with the game, a field is divided into two halves and each team defends one side. At the back of each half lies a flag. The point of the game is to grab the other team's flag and bring it back to your side before they can tag you.

In order to play the game, however, you needed all sorts of people.

First of all, you needed the shy kids. These guys would hang back at their flag and defend it from all attackers. They coveted the responsibility and loved the anonymity of their position in back. They had to be there when someone came. They were good at that.

Then you needed the macho kids. These guys would run toward the flag without fear. They were typically the first ones tagged, but they served notice to the other team. We're crazy, they seemed to say. Don't mess with us. They loved being in front.

Then there were the strategists. Those kids, typically the more militaristic of the group, would stealthily pick their way through the other team's defenses, hiding behind trees. These guys were the silent leaders, though they never really got near the flag because their plans took too long to develop.

And then there were the teammates. These cooperative youths always needed a partner to aid them in their attempts to capture the coveted flag. The team would attack together, assuming that at least one of them could get through and emerge victorious.

You also needed the somewhat tentative, somewhat courageous kids. They were the ones who would creep across the border, then scurry back at the first sign of trouble. They were careful not to draw attention, but they also wanted to do something for the team.

I was one of those middle-dwellers. I liked seeing the whole game unfold before me and I was excited to contribute to a team victory. All of you probably fit into one of those categories and you did your part to bring home the flag. After all, everyone was necessary on the field; there were no extraneous positions.

The greatest moments for me, however, occurred when I broke out of my typical position. I occasionally attacked the flag, feeding off the adrenaline and the fear. A couple of times I even got the flag in my hand.

There was nothing like it. For several seconds, the whole game was mine. My team waited for me to return as the other team scurried to catch me. As I crossed the line, I felt a sense of euphoria as yet unmatched in my life. I was tired, beat up, my heart was pounding, and I was shaking from excitement.

I wonder if all of you have felt that same euphoria. Have you ever risked your comfort in order to make a difference in the game? I truly hope so.

If not, if you have made it this far without ever sticking yourself out there, I ask you to do yourselves a favor and try. It is so easy to stay in one place, but life moves fast and waits for no one. As you walk away from here, look at your position and see if there isn't something more you could be doing if you just took a chance.

After all, there is nothing like capturing the flag.

Jamie Kanter is graduating with degrees in Spanish and psychology. He would like to dedicate his last column to the best group of friends a guy could have. You know who you are.