My Journey towards GOLD!

I'm not sure if I'm supposed to write exactly on the 'Fruits' of labor. But I think I'll take my chances and write on metaphorical fruits, and the arduous labor it came with. Here's my entry for @JonicaBradleyand @TengoLoTodo 's prompt #12, Fruits of Labor.

This is unlike my usual writings. I know I say this all the time, but allow me to explain how. I have mostly written about how my life is constantly going downhill, but, you see, I'm not a complete loser. This article is proof of that.

For starters, we can stop with the 'pity- aww', for dessert, I made a pudding, and it tasted well. Even the burnt parts :)!

I took up Rifle shooting as a condition. "If I have to go to this college, I WILL join the range"

I was granted admission to a fancier and glamorous college. Yes, the kind you watch in movies. But my parents made me join a smaller college for two reasons-

1. It was closer to my home, thus saving me time and energy on traveling. Traveling in a city is hectic. Traveling in an overly populated city is VERY hectic.

2. All this extra time and energy saved would help me concentrate better on the professional course I had to take up in the later years.

I went to college for 5 years and only had the first year in hand to enjoy my 'college life'. That was the goal- to enjoy college life as much as I could. The remaining four years would be spent juggling college academics, internship, preparing for the professional course, and extra coaching for the aforementioned professional course.

Anyway, I digress.

We have a small range and so not everyone who likes Rifles would be granted in. There were a few Rifles and gears, and only 8 people could practice at once. All in all, the resources are limited. It was a small college after all.

There was a qualification round after a basic course of ten days. I knew if I wouldn't get in, my college life would be dull. This was the only thing that motivated me to get up in the morning and go to college.

It was a friendly match of around 30-35 novices, wherein I placed Second!

Wait a second, I think I'm on to something.

That first achievement was the foundation on which my interest grew.

Alright, so I was in, what's next?

Nothing- you come in, practice, don't speak to anyone, and leave. If the coach is in the mood, he'd guide you, but mostly he wasn't in the mood.

It was a routine, I'd wear the gear, practice, and come out. I enjoyed it very much for a month, but without a goal, every day seemed mundane. But I went anyway, I had to get my money's worth, so I'd practice as much as I could. Rifle shooting is expensive, and I wouldn't leave the range a minute earlier than I should.

This was my first Rifle, the basic one. It's called National 25 or N-25. Oh, and did I mention I wear spectacles with a very high power?!

Meanwhile, I had joined the Archery club and was doing pretty well there too.

Long story short, short story shorter, after two months, there was an announcement for qualifiers. I secured Bronze and qualified for zonal. I qualified the zonal with a Bronze again.

What came next blew my mind. The state-level meant that I had to play outside Mumbai, which meant me requesting, pleading, and begging my parents to let me go.

Now, this is of prime importance- The initial response to any question asked to an Indian parent is ALWAYS NO.

You see, sending a 15-something-year-old out alone was out of the question.

After some days of regular coaxing and assuring them of my safety, they gave in and said, 'GO'.

I proudly came back victorious, with the Bronze medal. I was qualified for the NATIONALS, which means, people from all over the country would come to play.

I was the first person in 8 years who'd participate in the Nationals from our college. I received lots of attention too. I was getting pretty famous. My name was everywhere. It was all rainbows and unicorns for me!

(The girl who did 8 years ago had 3 years of practice, I only had 3 months of practice)

Everyone started taking me seriously, my coach, my colleagues at the range, my parents, the teachers, and EVEN THE COLLEGE PRINCIPAL.

I was granted exemption from attending lectures. I would spend the day practicing Archery and Rifle shooting, and evenings practicing Judo.

The Nationals were to take place in another city. This time my parents gave their blessing and I set my journey to Pune, Balewadi Stadium.

To get an entry into the stadium was a BIG thing, I had no idea until I witnessed it myself. Participants of sports from all over India would come here to practice. I saw the Men's Hockey team practice (the one that played at the Olympics). I saw a match in a football stadium which I had never experienced before. It looked exactly like on the TV! I saw the gymnasts in their large room, and athletes associated with other sports. Everything was just so extravagant and large!

The shooting range here could occupy 150 participants at once! I loved practicing here. The aura was different! I would practice for 3 batches for 3 hours each, which meant I practiced for 9 hours daily. It wasn't a chore for me, I was enjoying my time there. Every shot gave me a thrill. My interest was genuine.

This part is important.

One day while I was practicing, somehow within minutes, a crowd gathered in the range. But I couldn't be bothered, my shorts were scoring 2s and 3s. A lady came to me, asked me for my practiced targets, I was ashamed to show it to her. She set my Rifle for me and I was on track! My next shot was a perfect TEN! After she left, I realized I was the ONLY player who was practicing. I felt like Arjun and the targets were the parrot's eye.

Refer tale here.

I won't create unnecessary suspense. The post is too long as it is, and I think the title kinda gave away too. I won the Gold medal at the National level. It happened, it all happened, and I still can't believe it.

Meanwhile, things were going North with my Archery too. Bronze, Bronze, and Silver.

Three things I realized after coming back,

My 'best' friend at the range, who couldn't qualify was constantly spewing venom against me while I was gone. The hate was genuine.

During my time in Pune, my Dad was hospitalized with a fracture, my family didn't let me know about this.

The Lady who helped me set my Rifle was Anjali Bhagwat! Anjali Bhagwat has won multiple Gold medals for India in the Common Wealth Games in Rifle Shooting! She blessed my Rifle :)

I'm sure some ups and downs, a rollercoaster to be precise, would've pushed you to the edge of your chair and would've made my article more interesting. Unfortunately, my story falls short of a tragedy, it is simple and straightforward.

But this is how is it, this is my journey towards the Gold.

Everything went with a flow, and I didn't realize the wonderful things happening to me until I paused and looked back. I was too busy practicing :)

I'm presently struggling with my exams now.

If I can do it, you can do it as well. If I could do it then, I can still do it :)

This is the shorter version. If you're still reading, I love you :)

Closing thoughts- Why do all my friends look hotshots with age, and yet I look frozen in time?