When we found him in the woods, he was a sorry sight, his clothes torn and his hands bleeding．Before we 1 him, we saw him 2 ．He lay a moment．Then he 3 to his feet, staggered(蹒跚)a few yards and fell again．When we lifted him off the 4 , he tried to break away and run, like a wild animal．
We found him just in time．His 5 showed that for two days he had 6 in the forest, within 200 yards of the road．His senses were so 7 by fear and tiredness that he didn’t hear the cars going by or see the lights at night．
The man, like others before him, had simply panicked(惊慌) 8 he knew he was lost． 9 had been a near disaster might have turned out as only a 10 walk, if he had taken a few precautions(警惕)before he stepped from the highway or 11 a known trail．
A man’s sense of direction is 12 a question of observation．He notes the shape of a mountain, the direction water flows, and the way the ledge(山脊) run．With those in 13 , he may be turned around many times, 14 he is seldom lost．
There are exceptions, 15 , and once in a while a man does get 16 by some strange problem that puts him into the lost state．Darkness or a sudden rainstorm may catch him where travel is difficult．If he 17 experience, it may lead him to 18 the move in false 19 to find the camp against all chances．He might walk in circles or in the wrong direction, which in the end, 20 him out physically and mentally．
In my third year as a high school athletics coach, I gave a speech telling students and parents about the benefits of football．I gave the same 1 each year, aimin g at recruiting(招收)new team members．I talked about 2 football wasn't just for 3 athletes and how everyone could 4 from it．This year, a 5 looking couple approached me after my speech．They said their son really wanted to play football．They had tried to 6 him out of it, but he had his heart 7 on joining the team．
When they told me his name, my heart sank．Michael was five feet and ten inches tall and weighed about 108 pounds．He was a 8 boy, the constant target of other kids' jokes, and as far as I knew he had never 9 sports．I knew he would never 10 it through football practice, let 11 as a player．But we told them we could give it a try．
On the opening day of practice, Michael was the first player on the field, we did 30 minutes of warming-up 12 starting a one-mile jog around the track．I 13 my eye on Michael．At 50 yards he fell, and I helped him to his feet．“Michael,”I said,“Why don't you just 14 the mile?”He said in tears that he wanted to run with the others, so I let him go on． 15 he fell, but each time 16 himself up．
The same thing happened every day for weeks, and Michael gained strength both 17 and physically．By the last week of practice, Michael could run the mile without falling, we had 18 only one game that season, 19 the team cheered louder for Michael's run than the victory they had, Afterward, Michael approached me, and I told him how 20 I was of him．
