One cloudy Saturday. Bintan Triathlon 2015. Fifteen minutes to starting time. Waiting nervously. A couple right in front of me. The guy, small build but all muscle, changed into his tri-suit then did some light stretching. I was admiring his tiny waist line when the girl he was with then sat on a wooden bench and started praying. Not just a quick prayer but a long one. She wasn't in the race. At the end of the day I found out that the guy I saw that afternoon was Andy Wibowo, the winner of the olympic distance! Behind a successful man there is a wise and a strong woman. Vice versa.
For the first time in a race I didn't use any gadget. Since this was my first triathlon I decided not to worry about swim stroke, cadence, rpm, pace and bla bla bla. Any finish time would be my PB time. My estimation I would finish the olympic distance roughly in four hours. Then nature ran its course. Warm and calm salt water energised my swimming. Incredible vistas with tall trees and sprinkle of rain fired up my quads to keep cycling. Cool shadows from trees and cheering noise from Love, friends & strangers kept pushing my tired legs to run. A thirty one minutes time discount from my initial calculation courtesy of mother earth. Never underestimate the force of nature.
One lovely Friday afternoon in a small coffee shop. A good looking guy walked in. While he waited for his order he read a book. Drive by Daniel Pink, one of my favorite author. Perfect! A handsome guy who reads. I was about to text my single girl friend when he took out a cigarette and lit it up. One after another. A chain smoker. Darn! She hates smokers.
"The problem is not the problem. The problem is your attitude towards the problem. Do you understand?" Captain Jack Sparrow
One lovely cloudy Wednesday afternoon in a bookstore. Browsing: a June issue of Runner's World, a couple of books by David Sedaris, an intriguing novel called The Girl With All The Gifts by M.R. Carey and a new extended edition of Rick Warren's Purpose Driven Life. As I walked from the religion isle to the art book section, a lady dressed in all white took a seat and started to pray! Five minutes later she took out her mobile and started texting. A gentle reminder of Phillipians 6:4, Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done.
One quiet Tuesday morning in GBK with Bumblebee. A lady and her road bike. Guy#1 carried her bike and her stuff from a car. Guy#1 stayed put on one spot and hold a drinking bottle. Guy#2 rode a bike right behind her and followed her going around GBK. Not once did he pass her. Every now and then the lady stopped at Guy#1 spot for a drink. When ever she got off her bike for a drink Guy#2 scrambled to get off his bike to hold her bike. Can I borrow your gentlemen to Bintan next week? ;-)
They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Simply means beauty cannot be judged objectively, for what one person finds beautiful or admirable may not appeal to another. How a teacher can grade a child's drawing assignment with a number or even a letter system is beyond my limited common sense. In my opinion there is no such things as bad drawings, only bad teachers.
My little niece, Maureen, is a bottomless chatter box. The only time she is not talking is when she sleeps. But the other day when she was helping me with my laundry, she just sat in front of the washing machine completely mesmerized by its cycle. She stopped talking for a whole ten minutes! Apparently washing machine can put a trance on her. Let's have more laundry date, Maureen!
During a 35K ride, every time we had to cross an intersection, he sped up to my right and guided me to safety. After a 35K ride he bought me an ice cream. And he remembers I like almond. Little things matter. Happy May Day! I love you.
