When we joined the gymkhana first we wanted Jispa to learn a
sport properly. The one we honed in thanks to the timings etc was badminton. We
also put her in swimming just to get her to learn it as a life skill. She was
doing well in badminton as well when she got promoted first in the swimming
batch and that decided her (till now) sports career.
But that’s not the point I am making. I remember one of the
things that they made Jispa do was run up and run backwards on the court. Just
run up and back. Simple. Get on your toes and run up and backwards. That’s a
drill. Drills are important in sport training. They help you develop specific
muscles and the build muscle memory. Then on the court it’s a second nature and
replication of the same.
I have been playing badminton for long and all of it is
self-taught. Looking at what the others do and thinking and trying to improve
my game. It has reached a reasonable level but is now obviously plateauing. You
end up playing with the same people again and again and then you aren’t able to
develop your game. You have to play with multiple players in multiple settings
to get an all-round feel to your game.
On the side of the court is a poster with the Indian legend Gopichand
with different poses and explaining how to hit different shots. For the overhead
smash one thing that I noticed that it required you to get behind the shuttle
in a way that the shuttle is just ahead of you and you can then smash it right.
It was interesting. I started trying to do that and it’s right, the shuttle then
just flew off the racket in a powerful hard smash. That’s when I knew what I was
doing wrong. I was being lazy. I was just getting back enough to get to the shuttle
to hit it back not enough to get behind it. Just a step more… or possibly half
a step more. That was the difficult one. It didn’t come naturally. That’s when I
remembered Jispa’s drills- run up and run back. That’s the trick. Keep running
back. I forced myself to run back a little more than normal. Again and again. And
again. The smashes started going. It’s just a simple thing.
That’s the great thing about drills. Drills help you get the
muscle memory right and get you to do the right thing immediately without
effort in the match. I am amazed how simple it really is and with a little
extra effort the game becomes much more enjoyable. Lovely.
These small efforts give me tons of meaning. I think these are
cute things that help me get past what otherwise would be a mundane life. Our
experiences around us make us who we are. We can go by thinking about the same
old routine and get bored and exasperated by the predictability of it or we can
get small joys in knowing that they can be improved or there is joy in the
repeatability of it all.
Will I be a cynic with a mid-life crises when I tell you
that don’t chase some great joy in life? Great joys are few and far in your
life. My child being born was a great freaking joy. Falling in love with
jasmine was a great freaking joy. Seeing my daughter win a race was great
freaking joy. Seeing her lead the sports day oath was great freaking joy. But
these come a few times in a life time. Rest are all small joys. Talking to her
on various topics. Ganging up with her and making fun of Jasmine. Making the
world’s best Paneer bhurji for breakfast for Jispa along with a coffee cup with
oodles of cream is a cute joy. Running like crazy across the court and picking
up the shuttle inches from the ground to take it across the net for a winner is
acute joy. Giving a tough fight to the opponents in spite of being a weak team
is a cute joy. Solving a puzzle with Jasmine or figuring out a product with her
is a cute joy. Going to starbucks and ordering a pour over with milk and then
asking for extra cup and some soy milk so as to get two for the price of one is
cute joy. Writing this blog and posting it is cute joy. Buying a new pair of
shoes is cute joy. Having a whack a mole fight with Jasmine with me being eth
beaten mole is cute joy. Giving Jispa my old night suit t-shirt and then
getting her ear lobe to kiss is cute joy. Fighting with Jispa over who gives
the cutest nose kiss to Jasmine while she struggles to cover her nose in
protest is cute joy. Talking to the trainee sitting next to you in office and
giving gyan is cute joy. Rolling a tissue paper into a pointed rocket so that
you stuff it inside your ear to get the last bit of water out of your ear after
swimming is cute joy. Sharing your reading glasses with Jasmine while we oldies
struggle to read a menu is cute joy. Putting cold cream on Jasmine’s legs or
getting her to put cream on my back is cute joy. Giving Jispa a massage after a
particularly tough works out in spite of you having a particularly bad day at work
is cute joy. Giving a coworker a hug for no reason and not saying anything is
cute joy. Peeling an apple without breaking the skin, in one straight flow is
cute joy. Sitting in the pot and having one hell of a good download is cute
joy. Finding a new restaurant that serves you awesome vegan dishes is cute joy.
Meeting an old student who remembers you and tells you that you were the best
is cute joy. Having a young friend tell you about their ups and downs and
mental state just so that you know… is cute joy. Having a cool chat with your daughter’s
class mates and just chilling around is cute joy. Connecting to a barista at Starbucks
and hi fiving them when you go the next time, is a cute joy.
Beat all these bare cuteness of life.
