"I'm taking 30 hours every semester until I graduate. Which should be in less than two years," he said proudly.
"Oh my," said Todd, clearly embarrassed. "I'm only taking 15, but I should graduate on time."
Harry laughed loudly, rolling his eyes. "15 hours?! I'll graduate twice as fast as you! I can't believe you would be so slow!" He called his friends over, who were just as pompous as he was. He got the laughs he was hoping for as he exclaimed Todd's schedule.
Todd was visibly upset. "I bet I graduate before you!" He blurted out without thinking. Harry walked off with his friends without responding, chuckling loud enough for Todd to here. Todd called after Harry, trying to sound confident.
"You laugh now, but you'll see!"
Some time later, Todd was shuffling through a long line at a local coffee shop. He was typing deliberately on his phone, answering emails. Before he knew it, he had come to the front of the line. Without looking up from his phone, he ordered his usual- coffee with two creams and no sugar. As he reached into his wallet for a few bucks, he saw a face he recognized. It was Harry! They had class with each other for the first two years of school, then Todd never saw him again, thinking he had graduated. All the while Harry had never let Todd forget their little bet.
"Harry, how have you been buddy?" Todd tried to sound excited, but he most definitely wasn't.
"Oh hey Todd," Harry said, looking down quickly.
"What are you doing working here?"
"Uh... well about that, I actually failed out of college. I was trying to do too much I guess.
"Really?!" Todd did a poor job of covering his laugh with a cough.
"So what do you do now?" Harry was not looking Todd in the eyes, who was now wearing a large smile
"I'm actually a senior executive at an accounting firm here in town."
After some more awkward conversation, Todd had his coffee and was on his way out. He paused. Thinking to himself. Then, as he was opening the door to leave, he called across the crowded shop to Harry.
"I guess I won our little bet didn't I?"
(Overload Semester, Source: Cardboard Magazine )
Author's Note-
This story is an adaptation of one of Aesop's Fables: The Hare and the Tortoise. You can find this story at Aesop For Children, illustrated by Milo Winter (2006). This is a classic tale of a swift hare and a slow tortoise, and as we all know the Tortoise wins after the Hare takes a nap midway through the race, being so confident in his victory. As with all of Aesop's Fables, we learn a simple life lesson. In this case: The race is now always to the swift. I chose to apply this fable to some student's idea that they need to race through school as swiftly as possible. Clearly, this is not always the quickest way.
(The Tortoise and the Hare, Source: Wikipedia Commons )
Bibliography-
Title: The Æsop for Children
With pictures by Milo Winter
Author: Æsop
Illustrator: Milo Winter
Release Date: December 2, 2006 [EBook #19994]
Greg -
ReplyDeleteI think this is a fantastic adaptation of Aesop's "The Hare and the Tortoise." I thought your story was a very creative way to tell the tale in your own way. We are all in that position...How many hours can we take and still stay on focus in all of our classes, but to continue to stay on course for graduation. The only other constructive criticism I can give is to perhaps proofread your story once more, I believe I saw a couple typos. But honestly, this was a very creative representation of "The Hare and the Tortoise." Nicely done.
This is such a great retelling of this tale! I think it is extremely well written, as everything flows really well, and it's very entertaining since it's from more of a college perspective. I enjoyed reading this story, it made me laugh at some parts and I have no complaints. I mostly enjoyed how you incorporated the college experience into it. Great story, enjoyable to read, and I'd say it's better than the original :)
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this retelling of “The Hare and The Tortoise” as well. It’s an interesting twist to make them human in the modern world and shows the practical, applicable consequences of rushing things. Even if the situation of the story was slightly exaggerated (in that no one would take 30 hours a semester or make fun of someone taking a normal fifteen hours), it’s a perfect example of what Aesop was trying to say with his original story.
ReplyDeleteThis was such a clever idea! I would never have even thought to retell it like this! Telling it in a college setting definitely makes it more relatable. I think we all have that friend that graduates a semester early and looks down on you for take a few extra semester. I think you did a really great job of retelling this. You write really well and very clearly.
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