The boy who worked hard

Told in English, Telugu.

In a small village beside the Godavari canal, where green paddy fields stretched as far as you could see, there lived a boy named Ravi. Ravi was eight years old. He had a round face, a big smile, and two skinny legs that were, if we are honest, not very fast at all.

Every year, when Sankranti came close, Ravi's school held a sports day. And every year, there was one race everybody waited for. Three whole rounds of the school ground. The winner got a shiny medal and had his name read out in front of the whole village.

Last year, Ravi had come last. Not second last. Last.

"Ravi runs like a sleepy buffalo!" laughed some of the boys. Ravi laughed too, but at night, lying on his mat, he did not feel like laughing.

The next morning, he sat on the verandah with his Tatayya, who was drinking his coffee.

"Tatayya," Ravi said quietly, "can a slow boy ever become a fast boy?"

Tatayya put down his steel tumbler and looked at Ravi for a long time. "A slow boy who sits on the verandah stays slow," he said. "But a slow boy who gets up early and runs, every single day, becomes something different. Shall we find out what?"

Ravi's eyes grew wide. "Every single day?"

"Every single day," said Tatayya, smiling.

So it began. When the sky was still pink and the roosters were just clearing their throats, Ravi and Tatayya walked to the canal bund. The bund was a long, narrow path of earth running beside the water, with the paddy fields on the other side.

"Run to the big neem tree and back," said Tatayya. "Not fast. Just steady. Like the canal water. It never rushes, but it never stops."

Ravi ran. By the time he reached the neem tree, his chest was puffing and his legs felt like wet rice. He walked most of the way back.

"Good," said Tatayya.

"Good?" gasped Ravi. "I walked!"

"You went to the tree and you came back. Tomorrow you will walk a little less."

And Tatayya was right. The next day Ravi walked a little less. The day after that, a little less again. After two weeks, he could run all the way to the neem tree and back without stopping once. The ladies going to fetch water began to wave at him. The old farmer Venkayya, standing in his field, shouted, "Aha, here comes our champion!" and Ravi grinned so wide his cheeks hurt.

His best friend Srinu was the fastest boy in the class. One day Srinu saw him on the bund. "Why are you running so early, Ravi? Sports day is still a month away. I never practise, and I always win."

"I'm not running to beat you," said Ravi. "I'm running to beat the old Ravi."

Srinu scratched his head. He did not quite understand.

Then, one week before sports day, something sad happened. Ravi woke up with a sore throat and a hot forehead. Amma felt his head and said, "No running for you. You stay in bed."

Ravi stayed in bed for three days. He could hear the roosters in the morning, calling him to the bund, and he could not go. On the third day, a tear rolled down onto his pillow.

Ammamma came in with a bowl of hot rasam and rice. She sat beside him and stroked his hair.

"Why so sad, kanna?"

"I missed three days, Ammamma. All my hard work is gone. I should just give up."

Ammamma shook her head gently. "When the rain stops the farmers for three days, do they say the whole field is lost? No. They wait, they rest, and then they go back to work. Your legs have not forgotten the bund, Ravi. Nothing you learned has gone away. A rested boy can always start again."

Ravi ate every bit of the rasam. And the very next morning, a little slowly, he was back on the canal bund.

At last, sports day arrived. The school ground was decorated with mango leaves and bright paper flags. Mothers and fathers and grandparents sat in rows under the big tamarind tree. Lakshmi teacher stood at the starting line holding a whistle.

Ravi's heart was thumping like a drum at a festival. He looked at the crowd and saw Tatayya and Ammamma sitting right at the front.

"Ready... steady..." Lakshmi teacher blew the whistle. Pheeeee!

Off went the boys! Srinu shot ahead like an arrow. Many others raced after him, kicking up dust. Ravi stayed behind them. Some people in the crowd shook their heads. "Poor Ravi, last again."

But Ravi remembered what Tatayya said. Steady, like the canal water. Never rushing, never stopping.

In the first round, the fast boys were far ahead. In the second round, some of them began to puff and slow down. One boy stopped and held his knees. Another boy started walking. Ravi kept going, step, step, step, just like on the bund.

Now it was the last round. Only Srinu was ahead of him. Srinu was still fast, but his face was red and his legs were wobbling. Ravi's legs felt strong. All those pink mornings were inside them.

Can you guess what happened next?

Near the finish line, Ravi came up beside Srinu. The crowd stood up. Tatayya was clapping. Ammamma was waving her pallu. "Ravi! Ravi!" everyone cheered.

And with one last push, Ravi crossed the line first!

He could hardly believe it. Srinu came in just behind him, panting, and then he did something lovely. He threw his arms around Ravi. "You were right," Srinu laughed. "You beat the old Ravi. And you beat me too!"

When Lakshmi teacher placed the shiny medal around Ravi's neck, he ran straight to Tatayya.

"Tatayya, the slow boy became something different!"

Tatayya held him close. "Yes, kanna. He became a boy who works hard. And that boy can win anything."

That night, Ravi slept with the medal under his pillow. And early the next morning, when the roosters called, guess where he went? Back to the canal bund, of course, with Srinu running right beside him.