“What are you doing?” I ask my cousin Todd as he attempts to get into a padded sumo wrestling suit. I stare down at the mat he is standing upon. I think to myself for a couple of minutes thinking of what could go wrong with this. We are at a friend’s sweet sixteen and she has decided to have a sumo wrestling match in her backyard. There is a medium-sized garden of flowers encompassed by head-sized rocks, right by the edge of the mat. Someone could accidently fall and crack their head on those, but as I look up again I see the reason it is so close. Before me is a giant bounce house. It takes up pretty much all of the backyard, and with the wrestling mat took up pretty much the rest of the backyard.

“Well, this is going to be a fun party,” I say to myself as I look at my cousin. He has finally managed to get into the sumo suit, but he does not ask for the standard helmet that came with the suits.

“Ummm…Todd…Don’t you think you should put the helmet on?” I ask him hesitantly. He turns around and I attempt to hold back the laughter that is threatening to burst out of me. I see now that the helmet is not only for safety, but it also makes everything look proportionate and without it on Todd looks like a fat man with a little head.

“No, I don’t think so,” he says to me referring to my previous question. “Besides, I think it adds a sense of excitement.” Turning back towards the group of kids behind him he says, “Who will challenge me first? Who is man-enough to step in the ring with me?” He glances around, searching for his victim.

“I will,” I say confidently. I mean I am pretty good at wrestling and I am pretty strong so I believe I have a decent shot at beating him. There is one major difference though. I am 6’ tall and he is only 5’9”. Hearing my reply he turns back around and stares at me in disbelief. The group of kids behind him are muttering amongst themselves. I catch one statement from the group. “Is he crazy? Todd is going to wreck him.” Hearing this doesn’t faze me though, because I know what I said and I was going to follow through with it. I am going to give it everything I got to beat him.

“Alright then,” he states in a cocky tone. “Suit up!”

As I walk over to the sumo suit and put it on I start to doubt myself. I think to myself, “What am I doing?!” After a few minutes, and with much difficulty, I am in the suit. I disregard the helmet thinking back to what Todd had said about it being “more exciting” without it.

I step on to the mat and wait for someone to tell us to begin. Suddenly someone yells, “GO!!!” and the next thing I know I am flat on my back on the mat. People come and help me up. Without really thinking I charge at Todd and tackle him. This time though we both get back up on our own. We circle the mat, and then lock arms. After a quick test of each other’s strength we release and step back. Todd begins to laugh.

“Hey cuz, let’s make this more fun,” he says. “If you win, the feud between us is over alright?” In reply I run at him and try a tackle again. He steps out of the way and attempts to trip me, but I jump over it at the last moment. I turn and again we lock arms with each other. In unison we both throw the other one down to the mat, but I smack my head off the mat, causing the world to go black for a moment. When I get back up, I ready myself for the “SUDDEN DEATH MATCH”. Becoming fatigued and light-headed made me stumble for a second, but I quickly recover.

“I have to end this, – and quick,” I think to myself. So when Todd and I run at each other, I dodge and pivot on my toes and run back at him. Turning around, Todd stares at me in disbelief. Not giving him time to react, I jump as best I could in the sumo suit and dropkick him in the stomach, sending him flying out of the ring. Picking myself up slowly, the pain in my head causing me to lose balance, I get out of the suit and proceed into the house to find an ice pack for my head.

A couple hours later, after the party has started to die down. I am sitting on the porch, with an ice bag held to my head, when my cousin walks over to me and hands me a soda.

“How’s your head?” he asks as he plants himself on the porch steps.

“It’s been better, I guess,” I say, and then hesitantly I ask, “So does this mean that the feud between us is over?” My hopes were high. This feud had been going on since Todd and I were 10. That was 8 years ago. I remember that it all started when Todd and I were first trying to BMX. He was so good and I kept falling off my bike. Afterwards he told me that I was never going to beat him at anything and that I was a wimp who would always be beneath him. Ever since then I have tried to best him at many things only to crash and burn in the attempt. I prayed that his answer would be what I hoped for.

“Yeah,” he replies after much thought. His face seems to be engulfed in a enormous smile as he takes another swig of his soda.

“Cool,” I say. “I guess I will see you at the skate park tomorrow then?”

“Sure, and maybe I will teach you how to do that 360 correctly?” he says with a chuckle.

I laugh a little while, then say, “Alright.” He smiles then stands up and walks away. As he does I think to myself.

“Hehe…I guess it’s true what they say,” I chuckle to myself. “Good things do come to those who have the patience and the perseverance to wait for the day when all feuds come to an end.” Finishing my soda, I stand and begin to head toward my house, humming ‘Don’t Stop Believing,” to myself the whole while.