image generated using Gemini AI
Solomon has been an average student since he grew up to understand what education is and why he goes to school every day. Every day, Solomon was being reminded of how his brother Simon was brighter and more intelligent compared to him by their teachers in school, the teachers will always compliment Simon, saying to our parents how smart and a fast learner Simon was, while Solomon was though smart, he was not as smart as Simon who was the eldest of the two boys, despite Simon’s playful and nonchalant nature.
Solomon always felt less between the two of them and would be fine every time Simon's result was better than his own; he was always using Simon to compare what he could achieve or the extent of his abilities. This got to him every time, one time he came back home with a better result, in a conversation with his father about his performance for the term, his father asked him what he did differently this term that made him come home with a better result, his reply to his father was his position in class moved forward only because some of the students who were more intelligent than him had left the school, allowing him to move forward.
His father looked disappointed with his son; he then realised that his son had lost all confidence in himself. He was happy when he had looked at the result in the first place, but his facial expression changed when Solomon had given him such a response.
Solomon’s Father: Son! Don’t ever look down on yourself, not now, not ever!
Solomon, understanding the disappointment in his father's face, bent his head in shame, looking at the floor as if the ground should open and swallow him up.
Solomon: Yes, Dad, sorry to disappoint you.
Solomon’s Father: I understand the feeling of feeling enough. I used to be like you some time ago,
Solomon, who had been looking at the floor as if searching for a place to disappear, slowly squared his shoulders. For the first time, he didn't look like a shadow of his brother; he looked like a son standing in his father's light
Solomon: Dad, really?
Solomon’s Father: Yes, son, I used to be like you some time ago, but do you know what?
Solomon: What, Dad?
Solomon’s Father: I promised myself never again! Never will I look down on myself and feel I am not enough
Solomon: But promises are just mere words you had said to yourself
Solomon’s Father: They are mere words if you only look at it that way; to me, that promise was my turnaround, and anytime I felt that way, I remembered the promise I made to myself, and it always served as motivation for me to look at myself in a better light. The mind is everything that controls how I feel. When you have made up your mind to be exactly what you want to be, every other element that will help you become what you want to be comes into place and helps you to be what you want.
Solomon: So, Dad, you mean if I say these words to myself today, my life will change for the better, that I can be who I want to be, if only I put my mind to it?
Solomon’s Father: Yes, son! That is exactly what I am saying,
Solomon: Okay, day.
Solomon’s Father: I want to be a witness to the promise you will make to yourself today. Promise yourself to be better from now on, promise yourself that you will never look down on yourself from here on, that you will see yourself as “good enough”, never doubting that you are enough.
Solomon: I promise to always see myself as good enough dad, I promise never to look down on myself, but to always see myself as able, I believe that I can be whatever I have fixed my mind to be, after all, I am my father’s son, and I promise you today dad, that I will be better than every previous version of myself, I will strive to be a better version of myself daily.
Solomon, after his conversation with his dad, felt very different. He started understanding the power of the mind. He understood that his difference from his brother, as stated by their teachers, does not make his brother better than him; it only makes him different. He understood that his competition was not his brother; his competition was for him to become better than who he was. With this realisation, Simon continued to work hard, always keeping in mind the promise he made to himself and to his father.