Noteworthy Bridge

From the time Arin was an infant he liked walk on a tightrope. As soon
as he learned to walk he wanted to do the balancing act too. Attached
to the top of his baby cot was a plastic rope from which hung assorted
toys. As soon as he was able to throw away the hanging toys which he
hated Arin would pick up a stick lying around and try to walk on the
rope. Of course he fell rather badly initially but very soon he was
smoothly walking over the hanging rope. His parents began to call him
'The Balance Kid'. Other people who knew Arin began to call him that
too. It was now time for Arin to go to school. The school had a
well-equipped gymnasium. Among the apparatus in the gymnasium was the
balance bar. When he saw it his eyes lit up. Whenever he found time he
would climb on it and move from one side to another. He was still a
child and someone had to lift him on to the balance bar. But Arin knew
what he wanted in life. That early too. As he grew up his desire to
walk tightropes increased by leaps and bounds. He loved the telephone
and electric supply lines. He would stare at them longingly. Of course
he knew that he would never be allowed to walk over them. But he loved
the challenge they could pose to the top-class acrobat in him. When he
was five years old he decided to challenge himself for the first time.
With the help of a conniving uncle he set up a rope between his home
and school. They were only five blocks apart. But the thrill was too
great to resist. To avoid disturbing others Arin decided to walk the
rope on a Sunday. He called his parents to the roof of their house.
Before they could stop him he set off on his precarious journey. It
took Arin ten minutes to travel from his roof to that of the school.
But the whole town came out to watch his feat and that itself created a
lot of pressure on the five year old boy. Five years passed. Arin was
ready for the next big challenge. He had tried many smaller tightrope
walks in these five years. Barring a few small problems he had always
been successful. Now, it was time to explore new things. Arin knew what
he wanted to do. The tallest buildings in the city were each fifty
storeys high. They were about a kilometre apart. Arin wanted to set up
a rope between these two buildings and walk over it. By now he was
famous and liked by all. The necessary permissions were granted easily.
On a Sunday the whole town gathered to watch Arin walk over the
tightrope which the local authorities helped to set up. It took Arin
only thirty minutes to complete the walk. The spectators were a little
disappointed. Immediately, Arin knew what to do next. Outside the town
was a river that separated it from the next. Arin wanted to walk on a
tightrope over the river. It was easier said than done. The river was
uncovered by any structure and full of water all the time. And Arin did
not know how to swim. Indeed, he had a mortal fear of water. The people
of the town wanted to see Arin walk over the river. Arin himself wanted
to do the walk. The only way this could happen was by building a bridge
over the river. Of course Arin never fell from the ropes on which he
walked. And the rare occasion he did fall he always landed on his feet.
If Arin fell into the water he was afraid he would drown. If he fell on
the bridge he knew how to protect himself. The people of the town
decided to act. They met the mayor and petitioned him to build the
bridge they wanted. When that did not work they started a signature
campaign. Some people got engineers to give estimates for the
construction of the bridge. That was when the people of the town
decided to build the bridge on their own. Donations were collected from
anybody who would give, including outsiders. Those who did not give
money offered voluntary work. In two years the bridge was complete. It
was named Noteworthy Bridge simply because the first person who had
made a donation towards building of the structure was John Noteworthy.
On the tenth of January all the people in the town including the mayor
gathered near the bridge. Earlier, a rope had been set up across the
three kilometre expanse of the bridge. The people held their breath as
thirteen year old Arin climbed up on the rope holding only a pole. In
one hour forty minutes he was on the other side of the bridge. It was a
very happy day for the town.