One Step at a Time

By Bernard Wendelin

Handsome schoolboy, Bob Puttie, has the pick of the girlfriends but as he commences a personal self improvement he flounders. The woman he grows to admire detests him and his values. It is not going to be easy.

Pretty Boy's true personality emerges bit by bit through a series of events many of us endure in a search for true se

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bernard Wendelin
• Release date: Jun 28, 2021
• ISBN: 9781737171485

Bernard Wendelin

‘A rare and talented man, using his skills to make a contribution to his world’.

Book preview

One Step at a Time

December 2020

B. Wendelin

Copyright © 2021 by B. Wendelin

All rights reserved.

Robert Puttie was always a sprinter. He liked a fast race and good results. He learnt to walk as a toddler on his toes for that youngster period. His mother could confirm that Robert usually got to his feet and used his toes, then would do a normal heel strike as the foot hit any surface.

Like many of his kind (sprinters) he walked on his toes bobbing along, it tends to make the individual swagger a bit. That made a handsome Robert as an adolescent, look haughty and arrogant to many observers. It was not so. His parents were very supportive and realised many people did not know their son.

Robert (Bob) to all his friends, also put a lot of people off by winning races and the consequent medals and adulation together with his bobbing swagger. The Bob they did not know, was a determined individual and criticism did not diminish his will to win or his training.

Today at his Endeavour Sports High School Athletics carnival Bob Puttie, a senior seventeen year old student had won the 100 metres as well as the 200 metres. He looked forward to an hour or so to the relay, as his teammates were sizzling in their preparation. It was a selection event for Metropolitan and State representation so the intensity of competition was fierce. Naturally a lot of parents attended to watch their kids compete. Two such parents witnessed the male sprints and their comments and conclusions were thus;

Look at the swagger on the winner, Jennifer!

He’s handsome and he is very quick.

Arrogant by the looks of it, but I do agree he is fast. Look, they are now shaking hands in good spirit.

Then reason took an intervention as the parents further discussed the event.

This is true of all sprinters I would guess. Look at the elite sprint athletes at the Olympics, they all swagger.

Maybe you are right. I just hope that the young man’s parents teach him humility.

Bob Puttie picked up his gear from the infield with relief. He pulled on an Endeavour tracksuit. He looked over at the seating and was very pleased to see his Dad. He walked over and on the way talked to many female competitors who seemed interested in his results. Bob Puttie had a plethora of female admirers it seemed.

Hi Dad. Thanks for coming. Can you put these medals in your bag for home? I am done as an individual but want to support my teammates in the relay and then I will be home, OK?

Sure Robert. You ran well and so did many in the race. I am proud of the sportsmanship that all of you competitors showed and I will see you tonight. I will organise pizza for dinner. Do these results today mean we will be going to Homebush Olympic park track for Metropolitan competition?

"Yes, it should be in a couple of weeks. I am not sure but the school will organise a bus for us.

Thanks again Dad. You are the best."

Robert, I have enjoyed watching you compete today, all the best in the relay, I am off to an appointment.

In the adjacent cricket oval a young women’s match was playing out. Endeavour Sports High School were hosting a Combined Catholic Schools (CHS XI). Endeavour were currently batting chasing the very good total of 120 runs posted by the CHS XI. A diminutive opening batter for Endeavour took the game to CHS by belting the first ball she received to the boundary with an excellent cover drive. Two girls from CHS chased the ball but couldn’t prevent the runs.

Endeavour’s opening pair met in the middle of the pitch, Camilla Meyer, from the non-striker’s end slapped her partner on the shoulder.

Shot, Sunny. This fast bowler can swing it.

Cam. I am sure we can make her very unhappy.

Rip it up, Sunny.

The next over that Camilla faced she commenced to play her shots around the ground. CHS were not functioning in the field as well as their batting had predicted. Perhaps they thought their score was enough to win. Fatal mistake! As Camilla and Sunny forced the CHS Captain to change the bowling three times and still could not stem the flow of runs from Endeavour. At drinks Endeavour had scored 60 runs without loss and were looking comfortable. Camilla was on 32 and Sunny mid twenties, the rest in sundries.

Cam, they say there is a representative Scout here today. One of the fathers of one of our athletics guys currently competing next door.

Beauty! We are both hitting it well and the Coach will be happy.

Robert Puttie, the Pretty Boy sprinter is in the crowd supporting our efforts, he has been waving and applauding for the last twenty minutes.

Sunny made a face.

I wonder how many of our team are his ‘girlfriends’. I am certainly not one.

Camilla laughed.

Nor me for sure.

Sunny looked but couldn’t see the ‘creep’, so she dismissed the discussion and concentrated on her batting. Sunny lost her wicket soon after and walked off knowing she had performed well and her team was in a good position. As she was leaving the field though she looked for Bob Puttie in the crowd but couldn’t see him. He had departed.

The Endeavour team were victorious in a close match but passed 120 runs after 28 overs. The young women from both sides shook hands and headed for the sheds for a cold drink before going home.

Bob Puttie was in his backyard shed with his father later that afternoon tinkering with an engine - it was Charles Puttie’s hobby and they spent time together in that Men’s shed getting greased up and fixing things.

Bob’s mind was on Sunny Gulson. He usually hid his interest in girls from his father as his usual group of admirers was dwindling due to a massive change in attitude from Bob. He was no longer interested in them and had shifted his focus to a current interest in Sunny Gulson, a classmate.

Bob now found he faced a difficult task in trying to make friends with a young woman who showed all the signs of someone who detested him. He heard it all from his classmates.

Sunny will just turn off her hearing aid if you approach her. She is quite selective and will walk away.

Bob wished he could turn off his growing interest in Sunny. His infatuation was escalating until it was impossible to ignore. He thought to himself, we all want what we can’t have.

Bob looked for her everywhere at school. She was usually with Jas and Shannon, her best friends.

Bob tried all kinds of strategies but none of them worked on Sunny. His failure rate was impressive.

Bob decided wisely to ‘let sleeping dogs lie’ and dug deep to change his focus to self improvement, thinking that maybe ‘I need to fix my obvious faults’. He loved to run and developed a desire to run longer distances, as a sprinter he had hardly ever run 5 kilometres. Bob changed that and commenced to enjoy road runs of longer distance. He did some sprints once a week but the need for fast running was wearing thin with him. Change was in the wind.

Next he joined a Boxing Gym, and found that this was life changing. Firstly the fitness of the people attending this gym was motivating Bob. He worked hard to keep up and elevate his fitness but this he found so difficult. He discovered a whole new world of pain and effort. During his first month Bob crawled out of the gym post class with no energy at all. Sleep now was so important, healthy diet was so important. The Instructors explained that for a boxer to be any good, the level of fitness required was extreme and that one must take one step at a time. There was no hurrying the process. Bob took this message to heart and it challenged him at seventeen years of age. Bob faced big decisions -do I continue with these fanatics or do I find a more placid way to get fit? Bob had many revelations with the Boxing Gym but the only one that stood out is -there is no placid way to get fit, certainly not so that you can spar with an opponent. The

Instructors observed and all encouraged Bob to continue so that he could spar with other participants. He was wobbly when first he stood in the ring two months later and had an opponent throwing punches at him. The fear factor was huge. Bob dug deep and saw the first round finished but he received many blows. Gerald told him;

Bob. Listen man you gotta keep your guard up. Defence is everything man -keep those hands up, then you can tap into some aggression. In boxing you get points for aggression. Bob, are you listening?

Yes. Keep your guard up.

Bob came out now with a plan for round two. He focussed on the unjustifiable rejection he felt from the young woman he wanted to be friends with. His opponent obviously had no idea of Bob’s motivation but got pummeled from the outset of round two. The Instructors supervising ringside Tony and Gerald were grinning ear to ear.

Bob. Go for it man. Well executed! Bob don’t hurt this poor man anymore.

The Instructors stopped the contest and congratulated both parties in the spirit of sportsmanship.

Bob never missed a class after that and learned to channel his frustrations (all of them) into his work at the Boxing Gym. Bob now had tons of energy and found other ways to self improve with his studies now in HSC year being a top priority. He did all the work, he revised all the work and became a quiet model student.

This was noticed by everyone. Bob may still be the ‘Pretty Boy’ but he was also becoming a workaholic at a very important time in his life. He tried to dispense with all contact with other young women. He helped his Dad to clean the house and do the lawns. Bob Puttie became unknown to his classmates and former friends. This made Bob a quiet achiever, he refused to talk about himself and led the life of a young man with deeds to be accomplished. Bob Puttie was driven and well pleased when he could take any step to achieve his fixed life goals.

Meantime, the object of Bob’s female interest -Sunny Gulson, was also on the path of self improvement with a developing interest in modern dance. Her aunt Sofia was an accomplished Dance Instructor with her own studio in Miranda. She had taken Sunny’s request to learn how to dance and commenced to provide discipline, moves and regular practice in her studio. Sunny’s level of fitness soared as she became svelte and accomplished learning how to move on a regular basis with style and form. Sofia taught consistency and the pursuit of ‘your best’.

Sunny was content with her lot and her HSC study became efficient and nearing completion. Her mentor Mrs Marja Trevoski had selected Sunny for a Work Experience program stint with Taren Point Marine. She formalised the process with a letter to the owner Mr.P.D.Green.

Taren Point Marine’s business owner, Mr. P. D. Green, known to all as Pete, favoured an energetic businessman model. Pete loved the game to find a world of new business and of course he liked acquisitions. This ‘floated his boat’ -pardon the pun as Pete was in the Marine industry. Pete had been on the lookout for a complementary business for some time and today could finally disclose his acquisition. Due diligence and negotiations were complete and the sense of satisfaction permeated his manner. He headed for his other Warehouse in Taren Point, the suburb adjacent to Botany Bay south of the Georges River, near Captain Cook bridge in Sydney.

Pete arrived in his Mercedes Benz V8 roadster and parked