THE AGGRESSIVE FELLOW

“No one beats me,” said Ryder with a laugh. “Don’t you dare challenge me!” His loud crackle burst into flames of laughter.

  The whole class was standing in the ground area, waiting for their new P.E. Sir to arrive. As it was getting hotter in the sun minute by minute, the boys had decided to play a game. And the result was obvious; it was Ryder who had won the game, the same Ryder whom the class called ‘The Aggressive Fellow’.

  After the win though, no one dared to play another game as in the far distance of their huge playground in the school, they saw a figure marching in. In a few seconds, the man’s came to light. It was their new P.E. Sir!

  Ryder was the first person to get enthralled. Before entering the playground, they had all hoped the new Sir would be a good person and someone who could train them well, and supposedly, they all were indeed happy with the man’s looks. But, of course, they were yet to see how their new Sir is going to teach them . . . and what he is going to teach!

  Everyone on the ground wished their Sir a good morning and the Sir too replied to it with altruism. Then he asked, “What do you children regularly play?”

  Ryder was the first to reply. “Cricket, basketball, and tennis,” he said.

  “Well then, I think we all will first start with warm-ups,” the Sir answered motioning his hand across the ground. “Let’s see if you can run the whole ground.”

  At Sir’s instruction, everyone started running (although a few were just jogging). But Ryder just stood there and watched the others run.

  “Why aren’t you running?” the Sir asked. “That’s how you should start your warm-up.”

  “Sir, I don’t need a warm-up. I can run faster than anyone here at any time. And I can also win any sort of sport you give me.”

  The P.E. Sir stood there looking into Ryder’s eyes for some time, and then said, “As you want to, boy.”

  After the warm-up, everyone assembled back to their positions. Then they were asked to do some simple stretching exercises. And as usual, Ryder didn’t have an interest in these.

  Everyone was fascinated at the way the Sir was teaching them. They started doing the simplest of exercises with great care to win their Sir’s heart!

A few days went on like this. Most of the time of the classes, the students only used to warm up and then play something for the last few minutes. Finally, a day came when the Sir said, “Okay, children. After all these warm-up days, I’ve known each of you properly. Now let’s play!”

  This was the day Ryder had been waiting for. He didn’t waste time and asked, “What are we going to play today, Sir?”

  “Golf,” the Sir replied.

  Everyone was bewitched. However, Ryder seemed amused as he said, “Why that kids’ game, Sir? We just need to hit a ball into a hole that is just a few feet away from us!” He started laughing, but others didn’t mind him. They wanted to try a new game, something which they hadn’t played until now!

  The Sir motioned for everyone to stand in a line according to their height. As Ryder was the tallest, he stood at the end.

  Everyone did their best trying to hit the ball into the hole. A few succeeded, while most of them got it either beside it or just a few centimeters before it.

  When it was Ryder’s turn, he confidently strode to his position, grabbed the golf stick, and aimed for the ball to the cup. However, the ball instead flew in the air and landed almost a meter away from the cup!

  Ryder felt embarrassed. He was trolling his very own friends when they missed their aim by an inch, and now he’d missed it by a meter! “Sir, I shall try again,” he said.

  “First, be patient and then attack,” the P.E. Sir said, motioning for him to attempt to hit again.

  Ryder swung his stick back and stroked the ball again. This time he hit slowly, but the ball yet again went considerably more than where the cup was.

  Ryder was disbelieved . . . there was no game he played so badly!

  “Not every game needs to be played with such force and aggression, Ryder,” the Sir said, his eyes fixed at him. “Playing with such aggression will only make you lose. This is your problem, even in real life. You cannot control your aggression and emotions. Aggression only misleads us, but self-control shows us the right path. Try again.”

  Ryder walloped the ball again and again, but every time the result was the ball going farther than the cup. He was shocked to find that he was the worst golf player in his whole class!

  Even so, his P.E. teacher didn’t give up on him. “Be it in a game or real life, self-control is more important than aggression.” He moved closer to Ryder and continued, “I was watching you very carefully while you were playing. The way you play reflects your personality. The mistakes that you make here are the same you make in your life. Here, hold this sand tightly.” He picked up some sand from the ground and passed it to Ryder.

  Ryder grasped the sand firmly. But the soil came out of his hand despite how hard he was clutching it. “It’s slipping from my fingers,” he said, looking at the Sir for a reasonable explanation.

  “You should know to exert the right amount of control on everything. If you act with aggression without thinking, it is a sign that you are going to face defeat. Focus and strategy are the weapons which take us towards victory.”

  Ryder stood silent for a moment, pondering the words his Sir had just said. He indeed had been aggressive, but he was more overconfident than any other thing. Finally, he proclaimed, “Thank you for your teachings, Sir. I will make sure I change myself as per your teachings and emerge victorious in a real way!”

Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of my imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or persons is entirely coincidental. || Contents of this story should not be reproduced in any manner without permission.