Thunder Bolt

After having watched the video, I can finally comprehend why this event hogged the headlines and the flash news for as long as it did! A typical story of another hero biting the dust. As an Indian with some interest in cricket, "heroes biting the dust" is something I can relate to very well!

Coming back to the video, we can talk lengths about what might have happened, what caused the false start, was Yohan Blake behind this and blah blah blah. We can have multiple rounds of discussions on the same and make it sound intelligent, but that does not change the fact that we may never know what transpired in Bolt's head for 0.10 seconds. What we do know off, is his reaction post 0.10 seconds. From his early realization of the false start to his interview later on, this man is an inspiration.

"Looking for tears? Not going to happen," said Bolt. "I'm OK."

When asked - Enough to run the 200 meters?

"You'll see on Friday," he said

And boy did he show us what an real athlete is made off! Come Friday he did become the fastest Jamaican!

When I first read this news, what struck me was not the false start (googled it 5 mins back!) or the reactions to it, instead in was the attitude of the man who was so close to realizing a dream, when it was snatched away from him. 

Many of us have been in similar situations. When we think we are so close to accomplishing something, we realize we were deluded. The success continues to successfully dodge us in a game of dodge-ball! With every missed strike, we feel the chill imparted by the failure.  "Man chooses is his own actions". What would you chose? It is an easier option to feel victimized by things happening to you than take control of them. It is convenient to say, "Probably it's not meant for me. I've better things in store, you know" than to say "Let's see how I can tame this wild colt". Don't forget, the wildest of colts make the best of stallions. 

In a game of dodge-ball, it doesn't matter if you miss your strike. You aim and hurl the ball, until it catches the target. There's no other way of winning it. You take as many aims as you can and get your target where you want it! It's a very simple rule of success. If you missed, in your first chance, that does not mean you are gonna miss in the next 10 chances. 

This reminds me of a certain certification I was taking up. I log in to the test, with almost zilch preparation. As I see the first question, I give myself a not-so-gentle tap on my head. 

You should have prepared well! You had time! Voices in my head never seem to stop!

Oh.. shut up you, I went to the next question.

My eyes are wide open now. Damn! I might get out with a 10%. It's gonna be embarrassing!

Being the optimist that I am (ya right!) I braved myself till the 5th question.

Ok.. that's it. I am freak-en screwed! Might as well end the test and throw some lame reason like ehh.. mmm.. HEADACHE! 

But as the 6th question threw itself on my screen, I began to calm down. It's just another experience. Max to max, I am gonna flunk, I might have to give it again. So its not all lost! Let's get done with this and treat myself with a nice cuppa coffee for going through with it. What say?

I endured the entire process. Guess, I was rewarded for it. I passed. I PASSED! It is again one of those small incidents that make me thank myself for not giving up early on. This is when I realized, it's not about the first 5 questions. Hell, it's never about them. If you get them right, well.. yeahh!! But if you don't then pull up your sock and then yeahhh!! It's never about what happens to you, but how you deal with what happens to you. If you can "yeahhh" in your failures, you can be happy no matter what! This does not guarantee an easy 6th question, but it guarantees a way of life which only enriches you a whole together different way!

There are times in life, when we given up either before starting the race or during the initial lap. We are apprehensive of the outcome and scared out of our wits to face failure. So we give up. Give up, giving millions of reasons. Give up, without even sparing a thought that success might just find a way to us, looking at us trying so hard. If you are hell bent on giving up, I reckon, you give up on furnishing reasons! Just remember - Failure is accompanied by multiple reasons, success is accompanied by desire.