'Things That are Wrong with Matt'

Matt has a list of things that he would like to improve about himself, which he calls 'Things That are Wrong with Matt.' At the beginning of the story these are 1) ignorant, 2) cowardly, 3) still a boy (not a man), 4) unattractive to the opposite sex, 5) spiritually confused.

Matt attends college to sort out number 1, which he then crosses off his list. He decides to study kung fu at Shaolin in order to take care of the rest of the list. This slowly works, as Matt is able to cross off spiritually confused, cowardly, and unattractive to the opposite sex. When he gets home and is able to lift his father off the floor, his father remarks that Matt has become a man, allowing Matt to cross off number 3 too. However, as Matt experiences more of life he realizes that he will always...