Pettrey and his Paint Brush

There once was a man named Pettrey, he was a very hard working person and never gave up. No matter what, his mom saw that he was going to be something in the future. She had this feeling, but never knew what it was. Their family was not financially stable; they lived in a poor village where the houses where made of old brick and they had leaves as roofs, but that never stopped him from working hard every day.

His job was a farmer and he had to work so that he could provide food for his family every day. Once he finished his work at 8:00 pm, he would head home to feed his family and spend time with them. He would then go back to work at 5:00 am; this is how his day goes. One day the newspaper man came up to their old house and dropped off a party invitation. It came from a well known artist and the party was going to be hosted in the village working space. At first Pettey really didn't think about it; he thought that it was going to be the same as the stupid parties that they generally host, he thought of them as a waste of time. Then his mother read the paper and saw that it was a painting competition and the winner was going to be gifted with a 5000 check. This money was considered a lot in that specific village, since they lived in a very poor village. He thought about it at first, but then changed his mind. He then thought, 'Why shouldn't I try to paint a small portrait?'

He was desperate to win that money, he really needed it.

His first ever painting was of the farm and the background was the nature. He showed it to his mother and, at first, she thought it was the artists painting. Pettrey said that it was his and she was so surprised! She didn't even believe him at first, but then she saw that he looked serious.

She told him, "You should definitely enter the competition!"

He replied, "I am going to think about it."

The next morning came and it was the competition day. He had only practiced painting the day before, on the small portrait that his mom thought was incredible. He really didn't have any expectation, because he had only painted that one time in his life. The competition started and Pettrey's heart was beating, even though he didn't think that he will win.

An announcement was made, "The first painting is going to be a beautiful beach landscape, 1 2 3 START."

Pettrey started drawing the sand and some small trees, then the beach, with some waves, and then the sky, with some beautiful clouds. After he finished the main drawing, he started to add some small details, some more precise strokes and he started blending the colors.

Then the judge yelled, "STOP!"

Every single participant dropped their paint brush. The judges took all the paintings and inspected each and every single detail. They all knew that these people where desperate to win the money, so they had to make it a fair choice. They took some time to narrow it down to three people. The third and the second will be getting some painting supplies, but the first place winner is going to be the only one who is going to win the money. Pettrey really didn't mind at which place he came, as long as he had tried, that was what mattered to him. It was time to announce the winner.

The judge said, "In third place, Alexandrine; in second place, Elizabeth; and finally the FIRST PLACE, PETTREY!"

All the people applauded.

Pettrey was so surprised that he had won, that he thought someone else was named Pettery! Then the judge pointed to him and said, "Come up to the stage."

Pettrey climbed on the stage and received his money, while smiling the biggest smile ever. He was so proud of what he had accomplished that he wanted to continue with his talented painting.

Pettrey quit his job and started to paint paintings. He goes to the city and sells them and comes back to the village and paints more and then he goes back and sells them. He has made a lot of money, plus the money that he had won. He can now afford to buy a small house in the city, so it wouldn't be hard for him to sell his paintings, and then go back to his house which is in the village. At this point he has made so much money that he is now the famous artist known as Pettery. His mom and his family are so proud and he couldn't be more proud of himself.

“The only thing that hurts harder than a failure is not trying.” - Apoorve Dubey, The Flight of Ambition.