A man and his son were walking through their orchard one day. The son, being a child of only six, was bumbling along after his father, laughing and frolicking as his father surveyed the land.
The father picked an apple, buffed it on his shirt and took a bite. It was sweet. Suddenly the son looked anxious, and the father knelt beside him, taking him by the hand.
“Son, what is it that pains you?”
The boy looked shy.
“You know you can tell me anything!” the father continued.
“Well, daddy,” the son said. “I see you eat that apple, and I want to be able to pick an apple of my own”
The man smiled at his son.
“It’s admirable son, that you want to do this for yourself. It shows that you have great aspirations. One day, when you are no longer a child, you will be able to reach these apples, but until then, there is something I can give you to help.”
And the man produced a ladder from behind one of the trees. A stubby wooden thing, it looked well used.
“With this ladder, you can reach the heights you’ve dreamed of and pluck the apples directly from the tree. I once used this very ladder to pluck apples from my father’s trees.”
He placed the ladder on the ground. The son climbed it, and sure enough he was able to reach the apples. He picked one, buffed it against his shirt, and took a bite. It was sweet.
At Titanfall, I continue to climb the ladder, just like that boy did. The ladder represents that final step up into manhood. The boy used the ladder to reach the apple, until one day he no longer needed the ladder.
I’ve been using the ladder to climb the heights of OSW. At the top there is no apple, but instead a golden belt, ready to be buffed and placed on my shoulder. Instead of a bite of sweet apple, I will get a taste of sweet victory, and then – just like the boy – I will outgrow the ladder. I will be able to reach that sweet taste of victory of my own accord.
I will grow from a child into a man.
And though the ladder will be cast aside, I’ll never forget the part it played in getting me where I needed to be. Each rung I climbed was a battle I overcame along the way. And it serves the same purpose for me as it did that boy. It serves to move me on up.
And when I get there, I’ll take a bite and find my victory just as sweet as any apple, and the land will be mine to survey.
And each rung will be a distant memory on my old, well worn, but eminently useful ladder.
Before that, there’s just one more rung left unsullied, and that’s the rung I climb at Titanfall, to claim that World championship.
Onwards and upwards.