BE INSPIRED! READ - "The Blind Athlete."

                                A Blind Athelete and her guide at Grande Prix 2015.

   Osas was a young athlete in whom his father spotted the ability to run long distances, but the problem was that he was blind. However, the father believed in this raw talent and signed him up for the state championship. He had big dreams, which he communicated to Osas while giving him a grand picture of what winning the tournament would be like. Osas was excited and willing.

   The father took him to the stadium and he ran with all his might and before he knew it, he had crashed into an opponent and fallen down. He got back up and finished the race, but he didn’t come first, he came second to the last, so he didn’t receive any medal at all.

   He was very ashamed of himself and hurt that he had let his father down. His father comforted him. While they were in the car, on their way home, he asked his dad why he fell during the race, and the father said, “You left your lane boy.”

“I’m blind, dad,” he answered, “It’s impossible for me to stay in one lane?”

“Its possible if you learn how to move straight forwardly when running,” the father  gave him a pat on the shoulder.

   When they got home, he practiced how to run in a straight forward fashion so that he wouldn’t collide with anything.

   He went for about six different races and everytime, he would make a different mistake, sometimes the same mistake and his father would comfort and correct him on the way back home. This happened everytime they went out for the race, he came home with blood and tears often.

   One day, his father took him to yet another race. For some reason, it felt different. He could sense that there were more people in this stadium and the cheers and jeers were a lot more louder than the other stadiums. He felt discouraged and tired and could even hear people mock him for being blind. He wanted to run away but his father held him and led him to the ‘starting point’, the jeers increased, but Osas resolved to please his father as this meant a lot to him.

   When the gunshot went off, he ran again with much fervor and determination. He tripped, but he did not fall and he ran without expecting to fall. This time, he was given a gold medal.

   Osas wept when he felt the gold. It was exactly what his father had described to him and suddenly, he knew that he could never have gotten that kind of gold in those other competitions he had partook in.

   On their way back, Osas asked his father the questions that had been bugging him.

“Why did you make me go through those races when you knew that I wasn’t going to win them? I was getting tired by the day and was wondering when the race would be over and I didn’t even believe in myself anymore because I thought I had lost too many races.”

   “Son, I knew that you could make me proud. But also importantly, I knew you would need a lot of training, to develop your senses looking at your incapacities. So I took you everyday to the local stadium in the small town where we resided and would train you. I did not want to let you know that it was just a rehearsal as I wanted you to put in all your efforts.  Every time you fell down and sustained injuries, I was hurt, especially by the rude comments that people made, but I knew it was for your good.”

Osas was sorry for doubting his father and said thank you.

You can do anything you  set your mind to do, the like of Cobhams Asuquo, Stevie Wonders, Oscar Pistorius are doing impeccable things because they set their minds on achieving success.

Be Inspired!  

Angela Adebiyi.