Chapter 5

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Chapter 5 "Good morning, Earthbending student," Toph said. I leaped to my feet and snapped to attention. "Good morning, Sifu Toph." "Hey!" Katara shouted, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "You never call me Sifu Katara." Oops! "Well, if you think I should…," I replied, then I turned back to Toph. "What are you going to teach me first?" I said, barely able to stand still. "Rock-a-lance? Making whirlpools out of land?" "How about we start with 'move a rock'?" Toph suggested. "The key to Earthbending is your stance," she continued. "You must be steady and strong. Rock is a stubborn element. If you are going to move it, you've got to be firmly rooted—like a rock— yourself." I watched Toph grip the ground with her toes, as if she were growing right into the earth. Then she swung her arms in a fluid motion and sent a huge boulder flying into the cliff wall. It exploded into a million pieces. Man, she's good! "Now you give it a try," Toph said.

I turned toward another boulder and set my feet. Steady, strong, stubborn, I thought. Then I swung my arms toward the boulder. WHOOSH! I went flying backward through the air, far away from the boulder I was trying to move. I landed fifty feet away from the thing, and it hadn't even budged! It's just sitting there mocking me. What did I do wrong? I did exactly what Toph did, I think. "Maybe if I came at the boulder from another angle, I could—" "No!" Toph shouted. "That's the problem. Stop thinking like an Airbender. There is no different angle or clever solution or trick that's going to move that rock. You can't dance around the problem like you do with Airbending. You've got to face it head-on. Stay rooted. Be rocklike. I see we've got a lot of work to do." Stop thinking like an Airbender? How can I do that? It's who I am. Instead of helping me, she's asking me to do the impossible. I didn't have this kind of trouble when Katara taught me Waterbending —I just picked it up immediately. But this is different. And so is Toph. She's not quite as understanding and sweet as Katara. Next Toph made me run through an obstacle

course with a heavy stone on my shoulder. I thought I was going to pass out. Then I had to shove my hands into a barrel of sand. Toph did it easily, but no matter how hard I tried, the sand kept scraping my skin and burning me. Why is this so hard for me? Then we tried combat, and I was even worse at that! Toph lunged at me, shouting, "Rocklike!" But I flinched backward, falling back on my old Airbending habits of retreat. I'm not doing anything right! Maybe I should just quit before I get hurt. "Stop thinking like an Airbender!" Toph shouted again and again. I'm trying, but I've approached bending one way my whole life. I can't just force my instincts to change… can I? After hours of practice, I finally made some progress. Toph had me toss a sack of rocks into the air, then move forward and catch it. And I did it! I kept doing it as I moved toward Toph, who was standing across the way. As I neared Toph, she lunged at me. But I stood my ground. I didn't flinch. I didn't jump back. I stayed rooted in my spot like a rock. Toph nodded at me in approval. I think I might float away, I'm so happy. Of

course, that wouldn't be rocklike. I didn't stay happy for too long. We were at the bottom of a long ramp that Toph had created, and I could see a huge boulder resting at the top of it. "I'm going to roll that boulder down at you," Toph explained. "If you have the attitude of an Earthbender, you'll stay in your stance and stop the rock." I suddenly feel sick to my stomach. What happens if I can't do it? Stopping a rolling boulder seems much tougher than simply moving one. "Sorry, Toph," Katara said, "but are you sure this is really the best way to teach Aang Earthbending?" "Actually, Katara, there is a better way," Toph said. Phew! Thank you, Katara! Maybe I won't have to stop that boulder after all. Wait a minute—why is Toph tying a blindfold around my eyes? She can't be serious? "This way you'll have to sense the vibration of the boulder to stop it," Toph said. Oh, great! Big help, Katara! Now I'll really get flattened. Okay, just take a deep breath, root your feet to the ground, and set your stance, hands extended in front of you. You are going to stop that boulder, Aang, even with this blindfold on.

Then Toph gave it an Earthbending shove. Hey, I CAN feel the vibrations through my feet. It's rolling down. I CAN feel the boulder picking up speed. It's close, getting closer, just a few inches away. AHHH! I have to get out of the way! This rock is going to crush me! I just know it. I can't move it! I can't stop it. I'm just not an Earthbender—that's all there is to it! Jump! Jump! Save yourself! Then the boulder rolled harmlessly past. "You blew it!" Toph yelled. "You had a perfect stance and perfect form, but when it came right down to it, you just didn't have the guts!" She's right. I blew it. What kind of Avatar am I? "I know. I'm sorry." "You ARE sorry. You're a jelly-boned wimp. Now, do you have what it takes to face that rock like an Earthbender?" Why does she have to yell at me all the time? Why does she have to make everything so hard? She treats me like I'm a little kid, and like she's the greatest thing that ever lived. I can't stand it anymore. "No," I replied, turning away. "I don't think I have what it takes." Katara suggested that we work on some