Beyond the Green, into the Greys
Losing like a champion
(upbeat music) Beyond the green and into the grace. Sharing my life with you, your truly hyphenated grace. (upbeat music) I have been listening to a lot of conversations about the Olympics and the near misses and brave attempts at winning medals. There have been debates on India's presence, both online and offline with people actively participating in it. I have listened intently, but hardly ever participated. I have never been a huge sports fan. Yes, I do enjoy watching an occasional game of football or tennis, but I have never been a huge enthusiast. I have realized that it cuts me off from several conversations since people like to discuss sports, take sides and debate and discuss and speculate. I have friends who engage in intense conversations about games and sports. I have realized there are several aspects to a sporting event. The athletes or the sports persons who are actively involved in the game, participating in the events, practicing, sacrificing their comfort for the sport, and eventually becoming one of the few stars or one among the many who have played and lost. Then there are the majority who are passive consumers who watch the games, discuss about it, argue about the quality of the games or sometimes even speculate about the outcome. In India, cricket has managed to hog the limelight with cricketers being as important as film stars, celebrities who see themselves in the limelight, constantly under the scrutiny of the social lens. But what really catches my attention is the idea of losing. Being a sports person is actually about losing, not about winning. Winning is the goal, the lofty goal, that every sports person aspires to a team. The victory stand is the aim, the dream, the idea that motivates the person to incessantly work hard. The goal to be achieved through patience and perseverance. How many actually reach there? The vast majority who never reach that final lap, the ones who end up in the fourth position, the ones who fail to participate due to other reasons, the ones who will never taste victory, who will remember the bitterness and the trauma of losing forever, the ones who will be forgotten, the ones who will never get to share those stories of winning, their stories will not be sought after, their stories will be nothing but nightmares, reliving of trauma at the therapist. For me, sporting events are reminders of chances missed, opportunities lost, near miss possibilities, and the pain and loss suffered by the many, so that the moments of glory for a few can be celebrated. Are you one of those persons who never managed to make it to the victory stand? Are you someone who has witnessed a tear once suffered the pangs of losing a medal? I'm sure many of you will be able to relate to this feeling, but life goes on, and we pick up other passions and we move on, and maybe remember with a tinge of sorrow, the possibilities that never got manifested in life. (upbeat music) (upbeat music)