A Fear in the Past can be a Friend in the Future
Looking back, there was nothing to be frightened of, and definitely no reason to escape from the situation. However, at that time I did everything I can to avoid a dreaded fear for most children; riding a bicycle.
In 2002, I was eight years old. I was happily riding my tricycle around the parking lot, when suddenly my dad told me that I should learn how to ride a bicycle. At first, I was excited that I can buy a big bicycle, and I will be able to go faster.
Later that day, I got on the car with my dad to buy a new bicycle. As we arrived, my dad said, " You may choose any bike you want." After looking around the shop, I screamed excitedly, "That one, the huge red bike!" Although my dad and the bike owner tried to convince me that the bike was too big, I was unconvinced. I was sure that whatever it is, if it is bigger it would be better. Besides, the bike was red. After 20 more minutes of my dad's futile requests to change my mind, I sat on the front seat while my dad put the bike in the car, and we went home.
The next day, I was eager to ride the bicycle and ran outside. It was than when an obvious, yet stunning fact hit me. I now have to ride that humungous bicycle. It was very difficult to even get on the bicycle, and needless to say it was impossible to keep my balance on the bike. To make things worse, my feet did not reach the ground when I sat on my bike, so not only was pedaling hard, I could not stand and rest. This suddenly made me develop a fear for bikes. Fortunately, shortly after I realized this my dad had to go to work. I just pretended to enjoy the bicycle until my dad went to work, and shoved the bike in the garage. The garage door remained shut for a long time after that.
The next week, my dad asked me if I wanted to ride my bike today. I said that I was busy doing homework although I did not have any work to do. A few days after that, my dad asked my again, if I wanted to ride my bike. I said that I had to study for a test, which was also a lie. Every time my dad asked me if I wanted to ride my bike, I was either sick, studying for a test, already said I would meet my friends, or doing homework.
After two months have passed, my dad began to realize that I tried to escape from riding the bicycle because I was scared. He promised that he will not let go of the bike until I was confident riding the bike alone. We went to the garage together to pull out the bike. When I saw the bike with my dad, it not seem as big as it was before. Although I fell a few times, I quickly overcame my fears, and learnt how to ride the bike rather quickly. This is how I first learnt how to ride a bicycle. To this day, I ride my bike when I have to go long distances.
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