The day I ran my first marathon

Life is the process of continuous self discovery.This line has been created by me through years of influence by movies,books & moreover life itself.We never know what we can, until we just go ahead & do it. And the feeling after it is just beyond words.

You can picturize me as a thinker.I love slow pace. Analyzing,pondering,wondering,reflection,contemplation etc are as natural to me as breathing.I love to devour classic movies, interviews of people who have had it all & stories of people who have lost it all too.Writing,painting,music,poems,reading are like the wheels of my soul which keep me going. Enter sports & I am distraught.

My early school memories of sports days reminds me of running races in which I would finish last.My classmates,teachers cheering me to reach the finishing line & I panting my way through. It was not that I was frail hence lacked energy, I simply didnt like sports. Without sounding boastful, I want to say that like all other human beings, the aspect of my life in which I failed disinterested me. So slowly & steadily my relationship with sports of all kinds faded & got lost in oblivion.

One of the first things I heard about TCS after joining as a trainee in Trivandrum was "Fit For Life", a novel initiative by our CEO Mr Natarajan Chandrasekharan or Chandra as TCSers fondly address him.It was a simple concept, as you join the software industry, instead of turning into a sloth bear, run & be fit and for every kilometer you run, TCS pays some amount for charity.So it was aimed to ignite two things, first an urge of physical fitness through running & second an approach to generate the amount for goodwill that TCS would donate for charity.

Though the concept made me happy, my aversion for sports didnt decrease. So throughout the training I just avoided going for "Fit For Life " sessions citing my overburden of project work, weakness, health issues & blah blah. Yet deep inside I had the haunting sense of failure that I would never be good in something as simple as running.

Enter TCS Bangalore.My project team insisted that as freshers we register for the World 10K Marathon at TCS Bangalore on 19 May to get a feel of Fit For Life.Reluctantly I registered for the 5 km Majja run, sub consciously thinking that I would make some excuse & not turn up for it.

And the day arrived & to my own surprise I decided to run the marathon, putting on the TCS jersey,cap ,wristband & runner Id, me & my friend boarded the bus at 7:00AM.The volvo bus was filled with fellow TCSers all with the same look.I felt a profound sense of unity in us, smiling at each other, strangers yet bound together for a purpose.

The Kanteeveera stadium was bustling with energy.After getting ourselves stamped with "TCS 10K Marathon" we entered the gallery.The entire TCS crowd was waving TCS flags, shouting & cheering.All were smiling to each other.It was a proud moment.

Then to all our surprise, we saw our CEO Chandra joining us in person in the gallery.The entire crowd burst in joy.We all moved to greet him as he was shaking hands with TCSers yet sadly I couldnt reach him Then we had the announcement that Majja run was about to start & we were to go to the stadium race course.

The feature of this year's marathon was that it was headed by the ladies of TCS. Yes & I was a part of it.Thrilled , i held the TCS Flag as all of us started the run.Just as we were about to leave the stadium, we saw a familiar smiling figure across the railing cheering us,yes it was Chandra. I ran towards the railing & smiled at him.He smiled and extended his hand for greeting.That was a miraculous moment of my life.Greeting the CEO of TCS.He smiled & told us to keep running.

That was a moment of awakening.I felt that it was planned by the universe to discover a side of mine I had never met before,that of a runner.All charged up , me and my friend started running, we ran , we walked , we saw people running for causes ranging from public safety to child labor to street animals. We ran & walked alternatively , halting in between near the dance stages watching people dance in exhilaration.

The biggest observation I had of a marathon was the spirit of the people who participated.A marathon is analogous to life I believe, people run it in different paces, some slow some fast, yet they are happy that they are experiencing it.There is no competition, no hurry, a group of strangers heading to a common destination bound by smiles & a common purpose.

So the moment I completed the marathon.I had a profound sense of fulfillment.It was not just because I had completed the marathon, it was because I had completed a part of me that was incomplete for so many years.

To my readers, Our lives are an event of infinite possibilities, all we need to do is transform them into our realities :) Cheers to life !