Staring at his desk covered in wood shards and lead powder, he looked at his shiny, black palm, knowing that he couldn't even place his fingers on his forehead to express disapproval for what he was doing right now. He was an expert of drawing sketches with mechanical pencil, but quickly found out that anyone with a right mind wouldn't pick this tool for drawing sketches. When he spoke up, he was banished from the classroom and made to sharpen pencils. He figured that he would never get why his teacher was so insistent on the fact that sketching requires those fancy hand-sharpened drawing pencils. Using those delicately sharpened pencils with their long and thin lead felt like drinking water out of a goblet. There was absolutely no practical value. Besides, he spent almost one hour only successfully sharpening six pencils, breaking 8 out of 14 and getting two new cuts on his hand. He started to imagine how the lead would seep into his vessel, traveling through his blood system and poisoning every single organ in his body. The corner of his mouth twitched to hold back laughter for this ridiculous thought, and he took out a new box of 14 pencils from his drawer. He pressed the pencil between the first two knuckles of his left index finger. Then he pressed his thumb on the upper part of the pencil and pinched the second half tightly with his remaining fingers and palm. His right hand held the handle of the utility knife and carefully sliced into wood until it came off. No matter how much he complained, his dedication and concentration always came naturally when he was actually working on things, regardless of how big or small they were. That’s also how he won the acknowledgement of his teacher, although he hadn't verbally admitted that. He couldn't hold the pencil too tight or too loose because overwise the lead would easily break. He spinned the pencil in his palm with his thumb and with the just right strength, he pushed the knife gently through the wood. Then he blew the lead powder off and spinned it again to make sure each side was evenly cut. He held his breath and his eyes maintained focus, as if he were cutting facets of a diamond. He put the pencil above his head when he finished, rotating the pencil under the light and carefully studying it with one eye closed. He examined the pencil like a carpenter observing a piece that took him a month to complete. “You can definitely draw without those sharpened pencils, but sharpening a pencil definitely tests one’s dedication and cultivates one’s admiration for his own work,” this is usually what his teacher said. “These are the two characteristics an artist needs even more than his talent.” A student who treats his pencils like an artwork will treasure his drawings like the greatest piece in the Louvre, and how much an artist respects his own work can greatly impact how far he can go.