An Ordinary Life

One of my colleagues once revealed to me one of his hard fought pains.
An extraordinary achiever he was; he never came second in his class.
He made sacrifices to become extraordinary.
He lost much of his normal self;
he used to write, no longer; he used to play, no longer; he used to go on long rides, no longer.
A prisoner of time, he lately realised, he no longer wants to remain extraordinary, not at the cost of losing ordinary virtues of life.
He can withstand ordinary pressures of life.
My colleague has understood that ordinary lives are also interesting.
Once again he has begun to write, play, and go on long rides.