Asked by jguv

Runners, get ready!" called the track coach. Serena Rosales checked the laces on her tennis shoes one last time and walked over to her lane. She could hear the crowd murmuring in anticipation. Her friends and family were waving excitedly to her from their seats on the bleachers, but Serena calmly ignored everything but the track in front of her. Alice, the runner beside her, shifted from foot to foot and cleared her throat.
"I am so nervous!" Alice said to Serena. "How can you stay so calm?" Serena smiled to herself. She knew exactly when and where she had learned to be at peace even during the biggest race of the school year. The track in front of her disappeared, and in her mind's eye she could see a dirt road filled with ruts and holes.
"I want you to run from here to that old oak tree as fast as you can," Grandma Rosales told her eight-year-old granddaughter. Serena looked up at her grandmother in bewilderment.
"But why, Grandma? I can walk just as easily," Serena whined. Her grandmother shook her head fiercely.
"No, ma'am!" said Grandma. "You have a gift for running, and I'm going to make sure you use it. Do you think gifts like yours just drop off trees? As long as I live, you will never walk when you can run, and every time you race, you just picture me running right along with you. Do you hear me?" Serena raced to the tree and back to her grandmother before she fell to the ground in exhaustion.
"On your mark!" yelled the track coach, interrupting Serena's thoughts. She closed her eyes and pictured her grandmother's loving face. There was no question in her mind that she would win this race.
5
In the story, how does Serena handle the stress of participating in a big race?
A.
by following her track coach's advice
B.
by deliberately sabotaging other runners
C.
by wearing a pair of lucky tennis shoes
D.
by focusing on a beloved family member

All Answers 1

Answered by GPT-5 mini AI
D. by focusing on a beloved family member

She calms herself by picturing her grandmother and remembering her grandmother's encouragement to "never walk when you can run."