When you are born in a cricket-loving country like India

When you are born in a cricket-loving country like India, that sport flows through the blood. Don't you agree? Otherwise, how could the entire family sit in front of the TV before the start of a match and advise how Kohli should avoid playing balls in the fifth stump line early in his innings. Who should have batted at the # 4 position, why Bumrah is not bowling his yorker today, and so on.?

Maybe that was why I only played cricket with friends when I was in school. And it could be the reason why cricket was the only lone game which everyone played in my school. The only time we played any other sport was during the annual sports day. Potato race was super fun and students used to try all sorts of tricks to win in this event.

I don't know why, but I used to like high jump and long jump. On one of the sports days in school, our sports teacher didn't find many participants for the 100 m race. He randomly handpicked some students to run. Unfortunately, I was one among them.

The competition was supposed to be held the next day. Caught in the crossfire of internal dialogues, I was scared about running in an event. I didn't know what preparation I should do. So, I played cricket with friends throughout the day.

The next day, around 30 students assembled near the starting line. I slowly gathered the courage to reach the place and greet my friends. Some were nervous like me, but few were brimming with confidence. As I looked at them, my own confidence took a turn towards the south. I was very clear that I stood no chance against all those raging-bulls kind of boys.

Students were divided into a group of six or seven students. The top two runners from each group would qualify for finals that were scheduled for the next day. The first group of students took their mark and waited for the sports teacher to blow the kick-off whistle. Mine was in the next group and my heart was thumping against my ribcage. 4, 3, 2, 1 and go, and the first group was on its way towards the finish line.

I moved to the starting line and for the first time, I looked towards the other six folks. I don't remember what exact thought was playing in my mind. But I remember, I was shaking in my shoes and it was quite visible from my body language. The first team had reached the finish line and it was our team's turn.

And there you go. I ran as fast as I could. I didn't look at anyone until the end. As I reached the midway, I was running short of breath, but I pushed through the pain. I don’t know what exactly happened during those one to two minutes, but I was in a different space altogether. By the time I reached the destination, I was in the top two. Oh God, that was unbelievable. I was super -happy to complete the run and qualify for the next round.

This reminds me of the wonderful quote:

“Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up, it knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning in Africa, a lion wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the slowest gazelle, or it will starve. It doesn't matter whether you're the lion or a gazelle-when the sun comes up, you'd better be running.” - Christopher McDougall

Probably, I was the deer in this case. But I was unsure if I would be able to repeat my performance the very next day, in the finals. In the next couple of hours, I roamed around the school playground in a state of excitement coupled with fear. By the evening, my body was tired and I could feel the pain as I had run head over heels probably for the first time. I went to sleep without any further thought about the next day’s run.

When I woke up in the morning, my body was still aching and even walking for a few steps was difficult. So, I decided to skip the final race. To avoid being confronted by the teacher, I didn't go to school that day. Instead, I took my cycle and roamed outside to steer-clear of the situation wherein the teacher sends someone home to find me.

That was the first and the last time I ran in any competition during my entire school or college career.

What are your memories from childhood about sports?

Childhood memories often are the best ones which we cherish for life.

Happy Children's Day.

#running #happiness #buildyourrange #anybodycanrun #buildyourhappiness #childhood #childhoodmemories #stayinspired #ChildrensDay