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Favorite
Stories: The Loser
The late Earl Nightingale, writer and publisher of inspirational
and motivational material, once told a story about a boy named Sparky.
For Sparky, school was all but impossible. He failed every subject
in the eighth grade. He flunked physics in high school, getting
a grade of zero.
Sparky also flunked Latin, algebra, and English. He didn't do much
better in sports. Although he did manage to make the school's golf
team, he promptly lost the only important match of the season. There
was a consolation match; he lost that too.
Throughout his youth, Sparky was awkward, socially. He was not actually
disliked by the other students; no one cared that much. He was astonished
if a classmate ever said hello to him outside of school hours.
There's no way to tell how he might have done at dating. Sparky
never once asked a girl to go out in high school. He was too afraid
of being turned down.
Sparky was a loser. He, his classmates...everyone knew it. So he
rolled with it. Sparky had made up his mind early in life that if
things were meant to work out they would. Otherwise, he would content
himself with what appeared to be his inevitable mediocrity.
However, one thing was important to Sparky -- drawing. He was proud
of his artwork. Of course, no one else appreciated it. In his senior
year of high school, he submitted some cartoons to the editors of
the yearbook. The cartoons were turned down. Despite this particular
rejection, Sparky was so convinced of his ability that he decided
to become a professional artist.
After completing high school, he wrote a letter to Walt Disney Studios.
He was told to send some samples of his artwork, and the subject
for a cartoon was suggested. Sparky drew the proposed cartoon. He
spent a great deal of time on it and on all the other drawings he
submitted. Finally, the reply came from Disney Studios. He had been
rejected once again. Another loss for the loser.
So Sparky decided to write his own autobiography in cartoons. He
described his childhood self -- a little boy loser and chronic underachiever.
The cartoon character would soon become famous worldwide. For Sparky,
the boy who had such lack of success in school and whose work was
rejected again and again, was Charles Schulz.
He created the "Peanuts" comic strip and the little cartoon
character whose kite would never fly and who never succeeded in
kicking a football -- Charlie Brown.
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