FITNESS FREAK

They look at my gaunt frame and ask:
“What keeps you so fit and lean?”
I tell them try to look inside the mask,
And see all the running I have seen.

When I was small I used to run,
From poverty, violence and abuse,
The taunts of my classmates were no fun,
It almost made me a recluse.

They teased me for my long hair,
Since I was born and brought up as a Sikh,
Horrible jokes they cracked on me,
Sexist, racist, I could take my pick.

At home, we always had “discussions”
My dad’s favourite subject,
Anger and abuses were the concomitants,
I used to run away in fear abject.

In studies there were these smarties,
Who always knew more than I did;
I used to race away from them,
Until my face from them I hid.

I joined the Navy at an early age,
It was indeed a dream come true;
Here I could be at peace with myself,
And the seas: black, green and blue.

But some men there that I met,
Were suave, clever and cunning;
They were skilled in pretense and deceit
And I soon resumed my running.

I made a lot of friends, but I know,
There were some that I’ve had,
I had to quickly run from them
For they made me lonely and sad.

I’ve had my share of wise men,
The so called pseudo-intellectuals;
I ran away as far as I could,
Since they were neither real nor factual.

I ran away from gathering riches,
By means that were suspect;
And hence I stayed poor at heart,
I raced from being abject.

On retirement, I didn’t have much,
But I had my running shoes,
So I kept fit by running away from
All those who often talk loose.

I joined the social media
Blog, Twitter, Whatsapp and Facebook,
But I often run away from those
Who post by hook or crook.

I have listed a few things above,
But this isn’t a list complete;
Greed, mobs, falsehood and unfairness,
Are others that make my legs fleet.

There, that’s my exercise regime,
That I follow without pause and break;
All the running keeps me in good shape,
Though I may not do it for fitness’s sake.

So, if there is one advice that I can give,
For the health of body and mind:
‘Live life, love life, love all you can,
But there are things that you must leave behind.’

‘Run away from them as fast as you can,
Don’t ever regret their loss,
Listen to everyone, and yet,
Love yourself and be your own boss.’

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Author: Sunbyanyname

I have done a long stint in the Indian Navy that lasted for nearly thirty seven years; I rose as far as my somewhat rebellious and irreverent nature allowed me to. On retirement, in Feb 2010, the first thing that occurred to me, and those around me, was that I Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (you will find an article with this title in this blog) and hadn't lost all my noodles and hence thought of a blog titled 'This 'n That'. I later realised that every third blog is called 'This 'n That' and changed the name to 'Sunbyanyname'. I detest treading the beaten track. This blog offers me to air 'another way' of looking at things. The idea is not just to entertain but also to bring about a change. Should you feel differently, you are free to leave your comments. You can leave comments even when you agree and want to share your own experience about the topic of the blog post. Impudent or otherwise, I have never been insousciant and I am always concerned about the betterment of community, nation and the world. I hope the visitors of this blog would be able to discern it. View all posts by Sunbyanyname