Day 6 of 27 — Two or three of my loves

 June 26, 2021

 

This morning I emerged from my bedroom at 6:50 am to the most stupendous sight — a bright round one-day-old full moon fairly high in the blue-grey sky, next to a very tall solid cumulonimbus cloud rising above the distant CBD. I brewed a cup of Ceylon tea and sat back on the sofa and watched as the cloud’s crown glowed red as if from a fire lit from within. Soon the cloud began to grow in width till it was three times its size, and the redness descended to the middle, while the crests glowed a purer gold.  The moon crept closer to it. I had forgotten that these are the clouds that bring us spectacular thunder showers. It was hard to tear myself away from this drama in the sky and I was late and had to run for my bus. But I was still the first person in the dojo and managed ten repetitions of sepai before the others bustled in. Rain began falling while we trained.

 

This 27-day blog experiment is a commitment to craft, to improving writing, another of my passions. I got the idea for it from the most constant of my lovers. One that is there for me in all weathers and ‘in sickness and in health’.  I train only four to six days a week — but I find a way to keep going even when injured—adjusting and avoiding what hurts and doing more of something else, or when ill—one of my Sensei’s had told me that Sanchin could be done even when very fatigued. A backache improves with the warm-up stretches and movement, and everyone knows that exercise promotes healing. What I am saying is that I don’t suffer from karate blocks like I do from writers blocks. I don’t procrastinate or need to feel inspired. I just do it. Some days it flows and some days it’s bad. 

 

I have been moaning so much about how the pandemic has dried up my writing. I’ve been lamenting the loss of words and story ideas. I have made efforts at trying to get them back. Many have started well and then fizzled, and I have become depressed. I don’t know why but the pandemic never dried up karate. I trained through all emotional states and troubles. A writer friend had once commented on this steadfastness and how it could be carried over to everything. Ya of course, I had thought but never deliberately put my trust in writing as I had in karate. Actually karate was the more difficult of the two for me. I was such a slow learner that my first Sensei in his wisdom did not grade me till I had trained in the dojo for almost eight months. Others came after me and got their first stripe even though I was one of the most regular students. So it is strange how often I give up on writing. 

 

Do I love it less? Nope. In fact it is another ‘death do us part’ relationship. 

 

I have overshot my words again today so tomorrow I explore further. The sky is filled with altocumulus or stratocumulus clouds — not sure which. Cloud watching is another of my loves.