Retracing 2019 and Ushering in 2020

"All endings are also beginnings, we just don't know it at that time." A quote from one of my favorite books 'The Five People you meet in heaven' by Mitch Albom. 

Its just a day left before we bid goodbye to 2019. As I look back at this year, its had its usual share of ups and downs.  On the positive side, there has been a lot of learning, a few unexpected surprises and some new ventures. On the downside, there were issues with health, lot of confusion and self doubts coupled with the inevitable stress. 

January: After toying with ideas for a year, I finally decided on the book that I wanted to write. It was about my journey to Ironman 70.3. This gave me a sense of purpose and direction as to where I was headed with regards to my writing. The creative writing classes at Stanford helped me immensely and I received some constructive feedback about my chapters in my manuscript. 

Started my year with a magical half marathon at Disney world in Orlando. It was an incredible experience running past the glittering castle and some of the well known Disney Characters. Several of the Disney productions made me childhood memorable and running this event made me relive my childhood. 

I also ended up doing a trail run which was stronger than my previous runs on a rocky terrain. The regime at Orange theory fitness which I began in 2019, certainly helped building my endurance levels.

Besides that the rainy and gloomy US winter precipitated those bouts of low. Being a person who loves sunshine, it was depressing to see the cold, dark and grey weather. 

February: I caught the infamous viral bug and suffered from a coughing bout of half the month. This meant that I had to shelve my full marathon plans as the event was scheduled in March. The continuous rainy spells didn't help either and worsened my state of mind. However I managed to read some great books and interview authors. Besides that writing my manuscript kept me going.

I also got an opportunity to interview runners from the Mumbai road runners community as a part of the MRR award winners series. It was great to speak to some of the stalwarts in running and learn something new. 

The highlight of the month was getting to meet a Holocaust survivor and learning about her story. Managed to get my copy of the book signed by her. It was an emotional and enriching experience. 

March: Spring was around the corner. A season that denotes new beginnings and one of the reasons why its my favourite season. I recovered from my viral and ran a half marathon in the beautiful Livermore Valley. It left my in high spirits as there was unlimited wine and beer tasting post the run for participants. 

The short visit to India also rekindled my spirits as I got meet my runner and reader friends in Mumbai. 

April: It was great to see sunshine again. My new course had begun in the first week of April and it was refreshing to meet new people and read some interesting pieces prescribed by my professor. Professionally, I began to get requests from publishers to feature some interviews with authors. 

April is usually a busy month with both my daughter's birthday and my anniversary celebrations. 

Running the Big Sur Marathon, end of the month was the icing on the cake. I had run the 21 miler(34 km) and it was after 6 years that I was running this distance in a race. It was a pleasure running through the rolling course with magnificent views of the ocean. Certainly changed my perspective towards running. 

May: It was my first season with Team Asha-a group that raises funds for education for underprivileged kids. I had joined the triathlon program and began the month with a 1.1 mile swim in open water. 

May also saw an unexpected bout of rain which prevented me from doing a triathlon. Besides that following the Cricket World Cup gave me that adrenalin rush. I also got to celebrate my dad's 70th birthday with some wine and cake. 

Ended the month doing a half marathon with Amit after almost a year, at the armed forces half marathon. Thanks to my parents visiting, there was someone to look after my daughter. 

June: The viral bout was back and I had another spell of the tiresome cold and cough. 

It made me miss my triathlon training with Team Asha. Nevertheless I recovered in time to meet a runner friend from Chennai who was visiting San Francisco. 

June was also an eventful month as I got to meet reader friends from the Did you read today community. Its a community commenced by my runner cum author friend where book lovers are encouraged to post about books. It was fun catching up with some of my pals in person and discussing books the entire day. 

Its also a month of celebration with both Amit's and my birthdays falling in June. Being Amit's 40th one, it was a special celebration. 

The month ended in a sort of low as I had a bad day at the mock trial event conducted by Team Asha. While my swim went well, I had a hard time following the gps on my bike and had retired halfway. Being a person, who hates to leave things halfway, I had a tough time recovering from this one. Those little imps of doubts began to creep in slowly and I wondered if I had it in me to be a triathlete. Despite the fact that I had just finished an Ironman 70.3 9 months ago and 5 Olympic distances. 

July: My writing was going great and so were my classes. Even professionally, things were going well. I had managed to interview Rachna Bisht Rawat who had authored the book titled 'Kargil' which was released on the 20th anniversary of the Kargil war.  It gave me goosebumps just reading and listening to the account of the experiences that our armed forces went through during a war. 

I also got an opportunity to be one of the event ambassadors of the Oakland triathlon. It was wonderful promoting the event and attending the swim clinics. 

I managed to visit Donner lake which was close to Lake Tahoe for a swim event. Unfortunately I succumbed to altitude sickness and ended up doing badly in the 1.2 mile swim. For some reason, I took it to heart and it left me wondering if I should even attempt any triathlon this year. 

The rest of the month was spent in serious introspection. Ended on a high doing the San Francisco half marathon with Amit. Running is always therapeutic and this particular run restored some feelings of self worth in me. 

August: Attending an open water swim clinic at Oakland enabled me to learn something new and altered my perspective towards triathlons. 

Deciding to adopt a fun approach, I cracked a personal best timing in both my triathlons. 

The rest of the month was a see saw battle about whether I should do my Ironman 70.3 event or not. 

Lots of confusion and stress before the big decision. 

September: This month began on a high note as I conquered my 2nd Ironman 70.3 title. Managed to cut down 30 minutes from my previous year's timing.  I was still riding high on the triathlon wave and managed to finish another Olympic distance triathlon in 2 weeks. Ended this month with an unexpected podium at a 15 km running event. 

Meanwhile another course had begun and I was on this continuous writing spree.

October: A busy month as I was doing some interesting interviews. I love interviewing authors and people in general. Enhances my learning curve and helps me gain a new perspective to things. 

Now that the triathlon season was over, I began to do some trail running. Being a nature lover and an outdoor person, it was sheer bliss to run amidst the woods. 

November: Highlight of this month was meeting author Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni. I had read her book titled 'The Palace of Illusions' many years ago. It was Draupadi's perspective of the Mahabharata. Mahabharata is one of my favorite tales. The complexity of the characters manages to intrigue me every time I read it. Made me realize that nothing is totally black and white. Its always a pleasure to meet authors and tell them how much you loved their books and get your copy signed.

Visited Solvang-a place cited to be California's own Denmark. It was interesting to visit the small quaint town that depicted the Danish culture to perfection. Visiting the vineyards, ranches, trails, I also got to tour inside the Hans Christian Andersen museum. The little mermaid remains a favorite with me even today and it was quite intriguing to read about his life.  Managed to procure a couple of books from the adjacent bookstore. Also learnt about the meaning behind the phrase, its raining cats and dogs during a small tour. Travel is another great teacher besides books. 

December: My course ended with a presentation from one of my chapters from the manuscript. It was received well by my cohort.  Another highlight was meeting Author  Mitch Albom. Its surreal to meet authors of books that you have grown up reading. He was surprised to know that he had a lot of fans back in India. 

I also received the best contributor award for Did you read today  and another unexpected podium in a trail run. 

A trip to Disneyland and Santa Barbara enhanced the month of December. It was great to go on those rides, walk inside the park which had a carnival like atmosphere. Visiting beaches in Santa Barbara, enjoying the sunsets and trails relaxed the mind. 

However I have succumbed to another bout of viral. I am hoping that this too shall pass. 

As I am gearing up to ring in the new year, I am looking forward to yet another eventful year. I am hoping to publish my book in the coming year, working on another manuscript. So looking forward to my writing classes 2nd week of January. 

I am also hoping to travel more, explore more trails, do more triathlons, read more books, watch some movies, start following NFL regularly. Lots to look forward to. 

Meanwhile Happy new year everyone! Have a wonderful 2020!