“One can either wallow in the painful emotions of the past or draw learning from it, apply in the present to create a meaningful future”
A few days ago, I got a new follower on Instagram. The account was filled with metal art installations and I was in awe. As I scrolled through the account I found a picture, of a boy with a familiar smile. The name on the account felt familiar too, it was him! An inspiration from a distant past had reappeared in my memory.
That 7-year-old, learning to skate on the lanes of our neighbourhood in Indiranagar, Bangalore almost 2 decades ago. Here goes the story.
Year 2003, my brother (11) and his friend (7) discovered a pair of oversized roller skates under the void space in our house, probably left behind by the previous tenants. Their joy knew no bounds, they had found a treasure and now they couldn’t get enough of it.
They would take turns to put it on and learn to skate on the streets throughout the day, my brother was quick to learn, he learnt it in a day or two. He offered it to me to learn, but I was too scared of falling and getting hurt that I gave up too soon. But my brother’s friend, he was of a different kind.
I still remember so vividly, this little boy with the brightest smile. He would put on those roller skates that outsized his tiny feet, try to stand up and Thud! He would fall. Not once, not twice, hundreds of times. For weeks he went back to it and every time he fell, he would roll on the floor and laugh, get back up and try again almost immediately.
The entire neighbourhood witnessed this episode. Some laughed with him, some laughed at him and some found this act very cute. But he continued. He chose to laugh at the face of failure every single time and eventually after months of consistent effort, he finally learnt it. He could finally experience the fruit of his effort, the freedom the skill offered.
I was thrilled to reconnect with him and find out where life has taken him. I appreciated his work and asked him what he was doing these days. He was pursuing a master’s degree in Art with a specialization in sculptures from one of the Prestigious Fine Arts colleges in Bangalore ChitraKala Parishad which has become quite synonymous with art over the years.
He asked me if I went to the same college (probably remembered my interest in art as a teenager). My response did surprise me a bit. The narrative of my past had shifted in my head. Instead of saying “I did not have the support and guidance at that point” I responded by saying “At that point, I chose convenience over hard work”.
I had spent most of my life being cradled and comforted in the arms of fear never truly tasting the freedom of achieving a dream. People who know me would disagree, they speak highly of my courage, but little did they know that the courage I showcased was just a mask driven by fear. But I had moved from blaming the circumstance to owning my choices and I knew that I had healed from it and learnt from it. While he had continued to persevere on his path of living his dreams. Leaving me inspired all over again.
Three lessons I took away from this interaction
- Courage is the language of the heart, but fear stops us from listening to it. Not that fear is bad, it’s just trying to protect us. Courage is a choice and so is fear.
- When you make a conscious choice to listen to your heart consistently, you build consistency. This bridges the gap between you and your dream.
- Blaming ourselves, others and the circumstances take us nowhere, but owning our choices gives us a sense of agency and an opportunity to change.
Having said this, have I owned all my choices and built consistency with being courageous, Absolutely NOT, but I’m on the journey. How about you?
If this story touched you and would like to read more of these, follow along.