It was a lazy Saturday afternoon, and Cheerilee had decided to do some shopping. She needed to get a few things and, figuring she had no other plans, decided to walk around Ponyville while taking care of her chores.
Walking around with saddlebags hanging from her sides, Ponyville’s teacher was just enjoying a tranquil stroll through town before a familiar voice calling in the distance interrupted her quiet walk.
“Miss Cheerilee!” A young voice called out, approaching quickly with the sound of galloping hooves. “Miss Cheerilee! Hello!” Sweetie Belle greeted her teacher with a smile before she slowed her pace, matching the walking pony’s pace.
The earth pony teacher turned to see who was calling her. “Oh, hello Sweetie Belle, nice to see you.” She smiled brightly, just like she did every morning at school. “What are you doing out in town?” She stopped to ask as she glanced towards the young filly. It wasn’t exactly late, but she couldn’t help but look around to try and spot Rarity in the distance.
“I’m on my way to meet Apple Bloom and Scootaloo,” Sweetie Belle replied quickly. “But I saw you and I wanted to ask you something.”
“Well.” That bright smile returned to her face. “I’d be delighted to answer your questions!” Even outside the classroom, Cheerilee always had time for her students. Duty or not, she simply enjoyed helping others in such a way. “What can I help you with?”
“How can I get my sister to listen to me?” The question came quickly and out of nowhere. Sweetie Belle looked to Cheerilee expecting her to answer right away.
“Excuse me?” Answered the teacher, slightly surprised by the question.
“How do I get Rarity to listen to me?” Sweetie Belle repeated, a hint of annoyance in her voice, her lips and brow twisting into a pout. “She never wants to listen to me, and you can even get Diamond Tiara to listen to you!”
Cheerilee thought about the question for a moment, finding it rather strange at first, but as Sweetie Belle explained, her features changed from confusion to a smile as she let out a soft chuckle. “Oh, well, that’s a teacher’s secret,” she offered with a soft giggle. “You see, a teacher has to be patient.”
“Patient?” Sweetie Belle repeated the word as a question. Now it was her turn to look at her teacher with a confused expression.
“Mhmm, patience,” Cheerilee answered again with a calm expression on her face.
To Sweetie Belle, this made no sense. Patience was the first thing out the window when her sister refused to listen. “But whenever I try to talk to Rarity she doesn’t listen! She always says she’s busy or she’s tired or she has to do something else important.” The filly couldn’t help herself this time, fully letting her face shift into a pout. “How do you get them all to listen, Miss Cheerilee?” Sweetie Belle’s voice carried a heavy hint of frustration on her voice. “How do you get ponies like Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara to listen to you?” She sighed, deflating into a defeated stance as she drooped her head.
Cheerilee let out a soft giggle, lifting a hoof to gently pat Sweetie Belle on the shoulder. “Not everypony is the same; this is the first thing you have to understand when you become a teacher.” She explained with a soothing tone to her voice. “Everypony is different and special in their own way, even before they get their cutie marks.” She paused to let Sweetie Belle take the information in before continuing.
“You have to understand them all and know how to better approach them. All you need is to have a little patience,” she said with a bright smile towards the young filly. “Without patience, you cannot have others listen to you and you cannot understand how to make them listen, how to make them understand at all. If you impose yourself, they will try to defend themselves from you, they will distance themselves from your reasoning and it will be that much harder to reach them.” She paused again, smiling brightly towards Sweetie Belle.
“Next time you have to tell your sister something, remember this, have patience with her and try to reach her with your words, approach her calmly, you’ll see she’ll be that much eager to listen once you figure out how to approach her better.”
Sweetie Belle stood in silence during the time Cheerilee explained it to her, and continued her silence for a few moments after. The young unicorn’s eyes opened wide as a realization hit her. “Oh.” She said at first, still putting the pieces of the puzzle together in her mind. “Oh!” She said again with a louder volume, excitement creeping in her voice.
“Do you see now?” Cheerilee smiled wide and bright. “When you lose your patience, you lose the willingness of others to listen. It's an important tool, invaluable to have when trying to talk to anypony, even if they refuse or don’t want to listen.”
“That makes sense,” The filly replied with a bright smile on her face. Cheerilee could see that familiar spark that came from understanding in the eyes of the filly. “I just have to stay patient and not give in to frustration when trying to talk to my sister, then she’ll realize that what I have to say is important.”
“Yes,” Cheerilee added. “But you also have to be patient yourself, right?” The teacher said with a soft tone, like the one she’d use to teach a lesson.
“If Rarity is busy, I also have to be patient with her.” Sweetie Belle brought her hoof to her chin in thought.
“That’s right, for patience--” Cheerilee started the sentence, but Sweetie Belle quickly gasped and picked up on the cue, finishing it for her.
“--is a virtue!”
“Exactly!” Cheerilee’s face beamed up. “It’s good to see you pay attention in class.”
Sweetie Belle smiled sheepishly and blushed. “Thank you so much, Miss Cheerilee!” The filly hugged her teacher, and while this caught her by surprise at first due to how sudden and quick the motion was, she was quick to return the gesture.
“You are very welcome.” She said before the two began to pull away from the hug.
“I have to get going now, but it was really good talking to you, Miss Cheerilee.”
“It was my pleasure to help, Sweetie, have a good time with your friends.” Cheerilee waved a hoof in goodbye.
“See you Monday at school, Miss, thank you again!” Sweetie Belle waved back as she ran off.
Cheerilee smiled brightly to herself and started to make her way towards her home again, happy to have helped her student. seeing that warm smile on the filly’s face made it all absolutely worth it.