Lessons in Losing and Winning

by The Peepal Grove School | 05-Oct- 23 | Learning

What does it mean to be a successful athlete? Is success only about winning or can there be some learning involved as well? I might be able to answer these questions by sharing a few lessons that athletics has taught me.

I look back to an incident from when I was a child trying to overcome my fear of the monkey bars. I would go to the park every day and attempt to swing from one side to another. It felt like a daily failure, falling each time, but I kept persisting and overtime the continuous efforts reaped rewards and soon I was able to swing to and fro on the monkey bars. This incident was just the beginning of many lessons that I learned throughout my athletics journey.

Athletics became an integral part of my life here at The Peepal Grove School. I have been given opportunities to test my capabilities. I am learning how to remain consistent and resilient during tough days and situations. Sports has taught me to remain consistent and to have the courage to keep trying whether it’s academically pushing myself in a challenging subject, working on a friendship or even working on improving my confidence. I am understanding that sometimes no matter how consistent you are, results do not come as fast as you expect them to and it’s in times like these that you just have to continue to do what you’re doing with the same interest and effort. It is becoming evident to me that I have to stick to things even when I feel hardest-hit and not quit when things become challenging but instead learn to enjoy these challenges.

Winning gold medals at the State Level (CISCE Athletics Meet) has only motivated me to set a higher benchmark for myself.

I am grateful to The Peepal Grove School for giving me opportunities and the space to grow and improve. I was given constant support throughout, especially when I failed.

—Tanuja K Parijatam: Grade 12 (Batch of 2024), The Peepal Grove School