Resilience

Girls ducked into nearby alleys as a group of boys came round the corner. No one wanted to mess with Armstrong and his rugged group of tough men who ruled the streets of New Salem, Illinois, America, in the 1830s. Men who happened to be on the streets either avoided looking at the rowdy group or smiled meekly in obeisance to Armstrong. Known for their feats of strength and oozing with masculinity of the era, the group, also called Clary’s Grove Gang, was the most formidable force in town at that time.

Armstrong, built like a bull and around six feet tall, was the first to notice the newcomer on the street. A strapping young man, dwarfing Armstrong by almost half-a-foot, was entering a store. The gang’s interest was piqued, and they stood waiting for the youngster to come out again. The young man came out with a carton of eggs in one hand and a sack of flour thrown over his huge shoulders, the muscles threatening to rip his shirt.

Armstrong grinned. It was a great opportunity to test his strength against that lad. The Clary Grove gang encircled the young man who soon realized that he had to fight his way out to go home. Without batting an eyelid, he threw the sack down, placed the egg carton on top of it, and drew back the sleeves of his shirt, further revealing the huge and calloused forearm that writhed with rippling muscles as he flexed.

Armstrong charged, intending to use his head as a battering ram. The giant encountered the mad charge by bending a little. The muscular Armstrong hit the young man’s stomach like a hurtling express. Air whooshed out of the youth’s mouth, but he bent further, his six-feet-four height enabling his long arms to reach Armstrong’s hips. Lifting Armstrong with superhuman effort at the hips, the youth lifted him, Armstrong’s face hitting the ground with devastating force.

The stunned Armstrong could hardly stand. The gang was flabbergasted. Lifting the huge Armstrong was almost impossible. Beating him at wrestling was unheard of. But the youngster had managed to flip him like a piece of bread. Armstrong regained his balance and embraced the young man. They became good friends, and the gang of boys became the young man’s staunchest followers.

The young man’s name has been included in the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, America. According to the information given there, the man has had only one defeat in 12 years. Quite a feat! This sport helped him to develop many qualities such as resilience and doggedness in his career. It was one of the factors that enabled him to keep pushing when everything seemed to be lost.

And that was also the probable reason he was not killed using a knife, but with a gun. If the assassin had tried a knife, the boxer would have easily overpowered the killer.

The young man was Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States of America.