Kolesnikova Vika Short story writing competition

Challenge

              I believe there doesn’t exist an ideal shot as well as an ideal person, ideal things, ideal behaviour or ideal actions. Our world is not perfect because there are no perfect people living in it. They are like me and you, my dear Friend. But devil is not as black as he is painted.

               During all his history a Person has been trying to make his life better. He has been making lots of efforts to improve himself, to make necessary conclusions from his own faults as well as from the faults of his surroundings. He has been also getting useful life experience due to the interactions with other individuals. Now we are speaking of a Person who isn’t living in his illusions, isn’t expecting presents from anywhere.

               On the contrary our reflections have to do with such a Person who dreams of achieving positive results in his life ready to overcome obstacles, to study and to work so that to feel himself happy or proud or (and)useful to others. Anyway it is up to him to decide.

               My dear Friend, you may ask me a question: “What are you telling me all this for?” To give you the right answer I should return to my childhood.  

               In my childhood I was an average boy. I studied at school and at the age of 12 I started training in a local shooting centre. It was my burning desire to be able to shoot as a sniper. It was a real skill for a real man, I thought. No wonder that I did everything my coach expected from me. I listened to all the instructions very attentively trying not to miss a word. I was training three times a week and every lesson was a real holiday for me.

               Day by day the time passed. Once I learned that at the end of the month our crew would have to prove our skills by taking part in a competition. The day of my first competition I will remember for the rest of my life.

               In the morning when the alarm clock rang I felt such weakness spreading inside every my muscle as though I hadn’t been sleeping at all. I realized that all night long I had been rolling from one side to another trying to stop the stream of my thoughts but in vain. They had attacked me and only by dawn I’d been successful to fall asleep. So forcing me to get up I took the shower and after the so-called breakfast I grabbed my sports bag and left the house. I went towards the bus stop where all the members of our crew were gathering. After taking seats in the bus we began to exchange jokes and to laugh what made the general mood elevated.

               When we reached the place (it was Kaluga, a town situated in Moscow region) we left the bus and went towards the central sports ground where the competition had already started. It was a Team Shooting Championship and it was MY FIRST COMPETITION. When I saw sportsmen standing at their shooting places with guns, my optimistic mood disappeared at once and I felt something curling in the stomach.

                Soon the coach said that it was my turn to compete. I took the bag and went to my shooting place. I made all the necessary preparations and in some minutes I was ready. The order to start was announced. I took the pistol and began the process. It seemed that my heart began its beating near me.

               “A m-o-m-e-n-t! i’ll-do-it! oh,-and-if-i-won’t-hit?! i-must-breathe! breathe! what-did-the-coach-told-me-about-the-right-shooting-position?! oh,-the-target-is-too-far! is-the-gun-adjusted?! help!!! help!!! i-am-alone!!!!!!!!” This stream of consciousness seemed to consume me entirely.

                Some minutes passed. “I must collect my thoughts,” I decided. “All the emotions must go away. Now I’m standing here alone face to face with myself and my gun. My goal is a black hole in the centre of the target. And it must be such a hole which really will be able to swallow up. At the moment nothing can happen to prevent me from making a perfect shot and if I’m not lucky now, nothing will be able to stop me from doing it next time. Nevertheless I’ll hit the target!”

               Then I calmed down. I stand my side towards the target. The feet the size of the shoulders, staring in front of me I began to raise the hand with the gun.  I looked at the hand and at the target. The hand should have the same direction as the target. But it was not so that’s why I had to change my position a little bit. After that I took the pistol in hand, checked its right place in it and began to raise it once again. Everything was OK. I loaded the pistol, put the hand down and breathed deeply two or three times. I tried to concentrate on the shot. “Things will wait as the advert promises. I’m here to compete and all thoughts and troubles must disappear. Now I’m going to hit the target and nothing in the world is able to stop me from doing it.”  

              The last short of twenty was made. I put the hand down, placed the gun and sat down on the chair standing beside me. I was exhausted. I’d never felt such nervous tension before.

               This competition wasn’t a success for me. But the most important thing I realized was that I learned to fight there, to fight with myself, with thoughts and emotions. It was the first step to the development of my personality. It was the beginning of my new way.