The Magic Pen

 

Rahul stormed into the house, threw his bag in a corner and himself on the couch.

“Relax Rahul,” said his mom who walked in behind him. “Work harder next time, I’m sure you will do better.”

“How much harder mom?” replied a frustrated Rahul. “I worked very hard but feared this would happen. This is my condition in 7th grade, I wonder what I’ll do in 10th?”

His grandfather, who was merely a spectator till now asked, “What happened?”

“It was his open house today, dad,” replied Rahul’s mother. “He did not fare very well,” she whispered.

“You do your work,” said his grandfather in a soft voice. “I’ll handle it.”

“Thank you,” she replied and went into the kitchen.

 

Rahul’s grandfather made himself comfortable on the couch beside him.

“Tell me what’s the matter Rahul, you can pour your heart out to me.”

“Grandpa, I know I’m a weak student. I work hard, trust me, but somehow, I know I’m never going to do well.”

“Why so much self-doubt? You have to start believing in yourself, Rahul!”

“Easy for you to say grandpa,” scoffed Rahul. “You had always been a topper in your school days I believe. Self-belief would come naturally to you.”

His grandfather did not reply. He sat quietly, lost in deep thought. Rahul thought he may have unknowingly hurt his grandfather.

“Sorry grandpa,” he said, taking his grandfather’s hand. “I did not mean to hurt you.”

“Oh, that’s ok Rahul,” replied his grandfather. “I think it’s time I tell you my secret.”

Rahul sat up straight, “What secret?”

“Wait a minute,” replied his grandfather and went to his room.

 

Rahul was curious, he could barely sit still. A couple of minutes later his grandfather returned with an old pen in his hand.

“This, Rahul, is the secret of my success!”

“This old pen?” Rahul was perplexed.

“Oh no, please don’t assume it to be just an ordinary old pen!”

“What is it then?”

“This is a magic pen,” his grandfather had a smile on his face.

“Magic pen? How does it work?”

“Here’s how it works. So, whatever you want to achieve, you write it down in a diary with this pen and that wish will come true,” replied his grandfather.

“Just like that?”

“Hear me out first. To begin with, you think about what you really want. Then you write it in a diary using this pen only. After that you chalk out a plan of how you wish to achieve it. Then you work hard believing in the magic of the pen. Trust me, it worked every time for me!”

“Wow!” exclaimed Rahul. “So, this is how you topped your class in school and college?”

“Now you know! But don’t let my secret out to anyone. Also remembered, the pen can fulfil one wish at a time. So, if you want to score well in your exams, write that and focus on that.”

“I will grandpa, thank you so much,” said Rahul and hugged his grandfather. He went to the room with the pen in his hand, a sparkle in his eyes and a glow of confidence on his face. 

 

That evening before he started studying, Rahul took a diary from his cupboard and in bold letters wrote in it, ‘I want to score 80% in my next exams.’ So confident he was in the magic of the pen, he already started to believe that he had achieved 80%. His mother came to the room and was pleasantly surprised to see Rahul’s face beaming with confidence.

“I’m glad to see you smile, Rahul,” said his mom, caressing his hair.

“Mom, this time 80% marks are guaranteed,” he said with a big smile.

“That is nice, but how are you so sure?” she enquired.

“Magic!” he replied with a big smile on his face.

 

So, with his new found confidence, Rahul started studying hard. Every morning he would open the diary and read his wish. Every night he would read the wish again before going to bed. His belief in the pen and in his grandfather’s words, made him very confident.

‘Now that 80% is guaranteed, if I work harder, I can probably score a little more,’ he thought and continued to toil. Finally, it was time for his exams. Usually, he would be terrified before the exams, sure of not doing well. This time things were different; he was confident and happy. He appeared for his exams brimming with confidence. A month after the exams, the results were declared. Rahul scored a staggering 88% in his exams.

 

Rahul stormed into the house, threw his bag aside and himself into his grandfather’s arms.

“We did it!” he exclaimed.

“No,” said his grandfather. “You did it.”

“Wait till I tell dad about the results. He’s never going to believe it,” said Rahul and ran into his parents’ room.

“Thank you, dad,” said his mom to his grandfather.

“Don’t thank me,” he replied. “He’s a bright boy. He just needed a little boost of confidence, I’m happy for him. I have to go for my walk now.”

“Here’s your walking stick,” said Rahul’s mom and opened the door for him. Once he left, she went into the kitchen.

 

“This is brilliant Rahul; I am so proud of you son.”

“Thank you so much dad but I have to confess,” said Rahul. “I had the help of a magic pen.”

“What magic pen?” enquired his dad.

“Wait a minute, I’ll show you,” said Rahul and ran into his room. In a couple of minutes, he returned with the magic pen.

“Here, this one,” he said, holding the pen with his tender fingers.

“Hey, where did you find this pen? I bought it for your grandfather from the flea market a couple of months ago!”

“What?” Rahul was dumbfounded.

“Yes, I clearly remember.”

“Grandpa told me he used this magic pen to score well in exams when he was in school. He lied to me!” cried Rahul.

 

Rahul’s dad quickly assessed the situation and figured out what his dad must have done.

“Grandpa did not lie to you, Rahul,” he said, placing his hand on Rahul’s shoulder. 

“What do you mean?”

“The magic is not in the pen, but in your heart,” smiled his dad.

“In my heart?” Rahul was confused.

“You always had the ability to score well, you just needed to believe in yourself. Magic is not some force that works on the outside, it is something you create inside. A boost in confidence was all you needed. This pen did that for you, well, that’s magic for me alright. Listen Rahul, to make something work you need to believe in it. Belief can transform an ordinary pen into a magic pen. The magic lies in the belief. As long as you believe, magic will keep happening. You will keep doing wonders,” explained his dad.

“You sure about that dad?”

“Yes, my son, when belief meets hard work, magic happens,” said his dad.

Rahul wiped his tears and hugged his dad and said, “Thank you dad. I promise I will continue to believe.”

“That’s my boy,” he replied. “But don’t thank me, thank the mastermind!”

“But grandpa is not here.” 

“I believe he is,” replied his dad. “Believe and he will be here. Look behind you.”

Rahul turned around to see his grandfather standing there.

“Thank you, grandpa,” said Rahul and ran to him.

“You are most welcome Rahul, you are most welcome,” replied his grandfather.

As they hugged, there were tears of joy in everyone’s eyes. In a way, you can say there was magic in that moment!