To begin with, let me share an incident with you all. Chess is my hobby and I regularly take part in chess competitions. Earlier I used to perform well but over a period of time, I started losing matches and gradually lost motivation. Noticing this, my father remarked “Rome was not built in a day”. I asked him what it meant and he retorted, “Find it out yourself, only then will you realize its significance”.
Once when I was playing games on the computer, out of curiosity I surfed the internet to learn about this proverb. Believe me I could relate myself so much that I felt as if this proverb was coined specially for me. Let me elaborate.
Rome, the capital of the Roman Empire consisted of only a few hamlets when Augustus came to the throne. It took him, not one or two, but 40 years to transform the face of Rome into a metropolis. Hard work over such a long period, isn’t it, but the result is there to see. Rome booked a place in history for its grandeur. A major wisdom is derived from this portion of history. The word ‘Rome’ represents a great or huge task and the words ‘in a day’ indicate the span of time. The logic is very simple. Big achievements take its own time and demand loads of patience and perseverance. This was the medicine I needed and I got rejuvenated.
Incidentally around that time IGNOU announced a two year chess course. I enrolled for it and gave my best. This proverb proved to be my guiding light helping me overcome any negative thoughts. I could complete this course in just six months. One fine day, I received air tickets from IGNOU inviting me along-with my father to Delhi to collect the award for being the 1st one in India to have completed this course. I rushed to my father and hugged him and cried in joy.
Do I need to say more? Perseverance has finally paid off. There can be no substitute to hard-work. Now I have made a resolution to pursue my chess career with renewed vigour.
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