And so it happens again!
Circa August, 2008. This was a time when one look at me would probably remind one of Humpty Dumpty from our nursery rhymes. 4 weeks or so into my first semester, I was walking to Engineering Drawing class, through a freshly soap-swept and still wet tiled hallway. I was running late, and as I hurriedly bumbled across it, I slipped and had the great fall. In such a way that my body weight (via my bottoms) landed on my right foot, twisting it. I was dizzy with pain for a while, until some kind men took me to the hospital, where it was diagnosed as a hairline fracture. And then followed 6 weeks with my foot in a plaster, and me walking on crutches.
Circa August, 2008. This was a time when one look at me would probably remind one of Humpty Dumpty from our nursery rhymes. 4 weeks or so into my first semester, I was walking to Engineering Drawing class, through a freshly soap-swept and still wet tiled hallway. I was running late, and as I hurriedly bumbled across it, I slipped and had the great fall. In such a way that my body weight (via my bottoms) landed on my right foot, twisting it. I was dizzy with pain for a while, until some kind men took me to the hospital, where it was diagnosed as a hairline fracture. And then followed 6 weeks with my foot in a plaster, and me walking on crutches.
Now I knew I wasn't the epitome of fitness, never having seriously pursued a sport (or any kind of exercise) but I couldn't believe that I was heavy and brittle enough to crush my own foot just by falling on it while walking! What a lame (hah) way to have injured myself!
Anyhow, it hit me that I needed to improve my fitness, and with all the free facilities, there was never a better time to start off a fitness regime. During the subsequent summer, I started jogging every morning to get fitter. Such spurts of enthusiasm, with gaps of a few weeks (months) in between, continued, and all the little running and climbing staircases did manage to deflate me a little, to the point when people around me managed to notice significant losses in my volume by the end of my third year. But I was not in the fitness state that I'd desired, and there was more to be done!
Never, however, had I been so freely loaded with time on hand as this last year, and I did utilize it, by training relatively regularly and completing three 6 km runs, with improved timings each time. It was greatly satisfying! Apart from that, I had been watching tennis for around 3 years, and had fallen in love with the sport to the point of obsession, and had realized that just watching the sport is not satisfying enough, and that it was time to begin learning to play. Thus began my first serious attempt in life to pick up a sport, and I'd decided to not give up on it!
My incredible patience coupled with the addictive nature of tennis sufficiently countered my incredibly slow learning in sports, and I gradually learnt hitting forehands, and less consistently, backhands, and simple, slow services, so that I could play recreational tennis to my heart's content! I felt happy and proud to be able to play a sport, something I'd always felt lacking about myself. The alternate/daily visit to the tennis courts was something I looked forward to the most!
April 22, 2013. A not-so-fine day. New balls were procured, and we were off playing. I'd been playing after the gap of a few days, and given my lack of maturity in the game yet, it had taken me some time to settle into the shot making groove. That feeling of satisfaction had begun building up. Just then, came a flying cross-court forehand from the other end. It wasn't the toughest to chase, and I reached for it, and just as I made contact with the ball, my right foot, that should have ideally slid, stayed put, and then twisted through almost right angle.
That same dizzy-with-pain feeling came back to me, as I slumped to the ground, figuring out in the pain what just happened. A few minutes later, took my shoes off, revealing a (table) tennis ball sized swelling in my right foot, and signifying perhaps a pre-matured long break in what was turning out to be a fabulous tennis career. (Don't dare laugh).
Goddamit! Just when the new balls had come, and just when I'd returned after a little break, and most importantly, just when the summer holidays are about to begin! I had made umpteen plans for this summer, and a majority of them relied on the goddamn foot (well, it was mainly playing tennis and roaming around). Now how long is this going to take to recover!? I sat in the hospital (surrounded by people who were unable to convincingly diagnose it) wondering what to do, at the same time trying to mentally accelerate the healing process so that the implementation of my summer plans is not hindered.
Now the whole point of writing this, is that it struck me, how ironic this was! 4 weeks into my 1st semester here, I broke my leg, and 4 weeks before exiting, I break it again! And yet, what a huge difference - it was this difference that probably cheered me up a little. You know how warriors take pride in getting injured during battle. De-dramatize that to my level. It was that little feeling of satisfaction, that at least this time, I injured myself not as a result of sheer unfitness, but due to a mishap that happened while playing the sport I loved! I mean, that happens even to the best of those who play! Sorry, second-best, Nadal is always second-best (haha). As I realized that I'll be off all intensive movements for the next few weeks, I was sweetly reminded of the last few months and years that I'd given to improving my fitness and stamina.
So begins a period of waiting again, until I'm ready to go out to the courts or tracks and kick some ass. And hopefully, in much more rigorous and regular fashion than now!
Vishwa
So begins a period of waiting again, until I'm ready to go out to the courts or tracks and kick some ass. And hopefully, in much more rigorous and regular fashion than now!
Vishwa
