The Story of Learning to Ride a Bicycle

The Story of Learning to Ride a Bicycle Summer had just begun. I’d practiced with my father for a few days and had finally learned to ride a bicycle without help. I was so excited I couldn’t describe it. When Agha Bozorg came back from a trip, I ran to him happily and told him I’d learned how to ride. Long live the Shah.

“Good. Let’s go out into the alley and you can show me.” We went outside. I puffed out my chest, put my feet on the pedals, and set off. I’d gone only a few yards when Agha Bozorg gave a loud cough. It startled me, and I fell. “Never mind, son,” he said. “Get up and keep going.” I started again. When I reached the end of the alley...

He called out, “Come back!” I didn’t know how to turn around yet, so I stopped, turned the bicycle by hand, and set off again. Halfway back, he threw a stone at a broken flowerpot by the roadside. I was startled and fell a second time. My knee was scraped and hurting, but Agha Bozorg didn’t come to help me.

Tears gathered in my eyes. “Get up, son. Come over here.” I stood up, though I was in pain. Instead of getting on the bicycle, I started walking it toward him. This time Agha Bozorg sounded angry. “Didn’t you say you knew how to ride? Why are you walking? Get on and come here.” “But...” “Do as I said!” he shouted.

I got on and started riding. As I came close, he suddenly stepped in front of me. “Don’t run into me!” Afraid I would hit him, I swerved, turned around, and stopped a little farther away. When I looked back, he was smiling. “There you go. Now come here and let me teach you something.” I went over. He put his hand on my shoulder and said...

“Do you know why you fell twice?” “I got distracted. I’m sorry.” “There’s nothing to apologize for, son. You fell because you let me, and the people and things around you, draw your attention away from your goal. “Instead of focusing on your path and reaching the end of the alley, you watched me and listened to noises and other things that didn’t matter.”

“The second time you fell and hurt yourself, you were about to give up. You didn’t want to get back on, did you?” “Yes.” “Never let anything turn you away from your goal. Failure is part of victory. “When you reached the end of the alley, you were afraid to turn and got off. But when you reached me, you turned easily, without even thinking.”

“So you see, you do know how to ride. At first you let fear overcome you. But when you came toward me, making sure I didn’t get hurt mattered more, and you turned around easily. “Remember, don’t let anything distract you from your goal. Now I’d say you’re the winner.”

My patriotic friend, remember what our goal is. Remember, we must not let anything, anyone, or anyone’s words distract us. Remember, we must not let fear overcome us, or even pain. When neither a person nor a fear can turn us away from the path of our revolution, know that day will be the day we win. Long live Iran. Long live the Shah.