Summer of Milestones

This was a summer of evolving and growing, and many lessons learned. For the past few weeks, I've been walking around in absolute bliss. I can now run 13.1 miles in about two hours and 10 minutes. Never did I think this was humanly possible for me. Back in July, I had signed up to run a half-marathon and have been training quite hard for it ever since. As the run date approaches, I am overcome with this immense feeling of excitement and adrenaline. Running has always been something I enjoyed, but I never pushed myself beyond my level of comfort. I had done several 5K and 10K runs, but was always afraid to take it further. My attitude changed once I went back to practicing yoga, which is a crucial part of my training.

As human beings, we sometimes limit ourselves in the way we think about what we can and cannot do. This, in turn, inhibits us from going into unchartered territory. Fear is the root of the problem. Doing yoga helped me deal with this in many different ways. It has given me this sense of confidence and strength that I've never felt before. This is when I had an epiphany and decided to run a half-marathon. Throughout the past few months, I had my many "aha" moments. I fell on my back countless of times while working on doing a full headstand without the help of a wall. Then one day, just out of the blue, I was finally able to balance on my head! Furthermore, albeit against the wall, I can now also do forearm stands as well as handstands. I was practically screaming with joy as I was hanging upside down. Reaching such milestones have taught me a lot about myself and about life in general.

Both running and yoga have shown me the importance of dedication, discipline, and perseverance. It has also taught me not to be afraid of failure, and to let go of your fears or anything that is preventing you from moving forward with your life. This, I know, can be extremely difficult to do. I've also learned to appreciate what I have and how far I've come along. For me, this is the definition of happiness. We often focus on what we don't have, but how about taking a moment to be grateful for what we do have? During my training, I had my bad days, when I wish I could have gone a bit further with my running, or when I just couldn't get my body to twist far enough to get into a pose. Feeling frustrated with myself, but yet never did I give up.

The past few months have been incredible because my training has given me the strength and focus to reach new heights, and helped me overcome a very difficult setback. In the end, the point is to keep learning and growing as a human being, and become a better person. I will always look back at this summer with very fond memories, and with much gratitude to my teachers, family and friends for being so supportive.