July 6, Utpal: Things to be grateful for
“I had 3 experiences with Suprabha. They all happened in my first race.”
Ananda-Lahari is eager to tel me some stories this morning. I am more than a little surprised. After running non stop for the past 3 weeks all the runners at this stage of the race often have little energy or enthusiasm for story telling. Yet as Ananda-Lahari speaks about events from 10 years ago, his eyes sparkle with added delight. Something this 39 year old Slovak runner continually confounds me with year after year.
His ability to remain cheerful is probably his strongest asset in the 3100 mile race. But as he explains through his experiences, it was not always so. In 2005, his first race, he speaks about reaching 2700 miles.
“I was just going through the counting station. People were clapping and going….oh, .. 2700 miles. Great!”
“It happened that Suprabha was also there. She said, congratulations for reaching 2700.”
“I replied, it does not give me joy.” Suprabha than simply changed the topic. Not willing, it would seem to have a discussion of her beloved 3100 mile race that wasn’t positive. “Than she ran away.”
“For me it was a very good experience. I realized that there always things to be grateful for.”
