Father Time, that great LEVELER!
- Amongst men, amongst ALL.

Friend,

I dont know what prompted me to “finally” write about this today – although it’s not the first time I’ve written about something like this – indeed, all my emails contain a very, as Charles Mitchell once said “strong spiritual content” (for those that can spot it!) … I’ve never written about it directly.

I could have named this email “Form is temporary, but CLASS – is PERMANENT – it always is!”.

I almost did, then thought of this title.

So be it.

But anyway, I believe it was yesterday I was having one of those very rare “conversations” (you know, people actually TALKING politely to each other in a cordial manner instead of coming to blows either literally or figuratively, not that literally would ever happen with her, I’d take off the hills at the slightest hint of that, hehe) … with the wife about (she’s a headhunter) how people that used to accept “10 lakhs per annum” (she’s talking India, thats about 12.5 K USD if I got the Math right in my head) are now working for less than 4.5 or so. (do the math yourself on that one).

This isn’t the first time she’s brought it up either.

Which of course, I’ve been seeing for years and I would have said it, but I restrained myself, if just to keep the conversation going.

Hey, my wife and me actually talking is about as rare as men landing on the moon . . .

It happens, but only so often!

So anyway, she was talking about how the used car industry is also now going down the commode (she’s working in that vertical apparently) and everything related, and I kept grinning like a Cheshire Cat as I often do.

“The heavy hand of justice is slowly descending isnt it”, I remember saying to no-one in particular.

The daughter piped up with her usual cute little “what do you mean”.

So I explained the four cycles to her, told her we’re almost at the rebirth phase and so forth. . .

Always fun explaining something to someone who GETS IT, even at her age!

But anyway, what does this have to do with the topic?

Certainly it ain’t about playing the long game – the topic that is, something I’ve done consciously and even unconsciously since I was born and keep doing MORE of as I keep “ascending” in terms of years.

The long game, my friend, solves all – period – or at least I’ve never seen it NOT solve a problem – or issue – or obstacle. Like water, Father Time and patience usually wears ALL, even the most stubborn of obstacles down.

Oddly enough, or maybe not although that is precisely what people need to be doing NOW – they aren’t – even less of them are than they would normally. GO figure.

Anyway ……… this isn’t about that. Maybe some day I’ll write about that, but for now?

Lets switch tacks a bit, lets talk about sports – cricket.

A lot of talk has been circulating about the Indian (once) captain Virat Kohli – who is a legend of the game – to such an extent that even if he doesnt pick up a bat again he’ll be regarded as of the best, if not THE best in many regards – to ever step foot on a cricket field.

True, the sport has evolved and become easier over the years, and so comparing a modern day great like him to say Don Bradman, the REAL great might not be on – but then again, Kohli’s record cannot be ignored even keeping that in mind – his feats on the field have just been spectacular and superhuman, that sheer weight of runs SPEAKS.

He was untouchable at one point.

Everything he touched – for years – turned to gold in terms of results, and so did the Indian cricket team’s with him.

Then, one fine day he slipped out of form.

No-one cared.

“It’ll come back”, people said.

It didnt.

A year passed.

The murmurs grew louder. Then two. Then three. I dont know the exact time frame, but I think it’s the third year now where he’s had such a lean patch that his record (again, I’m not a records guy, I’m an intuition guy) over those three years could probably be compared to someone with less than 10% of his cricketing class.

And his lack of form doesnt seem to be dissipating anytime soon either.

I read another introspective piece by a certain Mr Chopra whose pieces I often read on cricinfo, but lots of people have missed the point, or aren’t saying it.

Ricky Pointing, another great of the game – similar thing.

For years, he was nigh untouchable, then a Pakistani fast bowler got him on the wrist with a searing bouncer – when he came back – he was never the same (despite having all the weaponry in his armor to dispatch the fastest of fast bowlers back over their heads).

Now, you might think lack of confidence, you might think lack of focus, vision, or even “self doubt” – but the truly great know how to battle all that, and it usually doesnt apply to them as much as it would the average Joe.

You might think .. well in Kohli’s case, as Mickey told Rocky in Rocky III “you got civilized! Before, you had that LOOK in your eye!

Then you got married, you got civilized!”

You guys reading this will likely remember that email.

But it happens to the best of people – men are often BEASTS before getting married – once that happens, they get tamed. Hehe.

Hey, it happened to me for a period too!

But looking at Kohlis training (physically) and his fitness levels, which are superhuman even now – looking at how hard he trains, even now probably one of the hardest working people in the Indian team despite all his success – that dont apply.

Much like it didnt to Ponting, who even in his twilight, and indeed even now was “as fit as a greyhound” (the greyhounds Punter so loved punting on, hehe).

Then people talk about Kohli’s slight technical deficiencies.

Apparently when you’re on top you can paper those over, when you’re not, it shows.

I dont quite buy into that either, for a legend of the game with that many runs behind him, if it was just form, he would have worked it out.

The answer my friend, is this.

At least according to me.

“He who goes up, up, up MUST fall , fall, fall”.

And the fall is often painful.

Yin and yang, ups and downs, for most people they never really rise that high so when they fall, no-one, them includes really notices it.

But when people that were once flying HIGH – such a high profile computer programmer I know back in Jersey who today is almost homeless if you can believe that! – are down (and in sports it’s public) during the darkest of their dark times, their most precipitous falls – then people notice, if just for the contrast.

And hey.

It happens to EVERYONE.

No escaping that Universal Law, what goes down, of course, must also sometime come back up!

The key here lies, in my opinion in how you react to the DOWN Times – not so much how you act when times are good – but when times are ROUGH – rougher than you’ve even known, when you’re literally being thrown into new and unchartered waters daily, when you’re literally “you against the world” and so forth.

Sure, introspect, if your business is faltering then take logical steps to improve what needs to be, if your game (if youre a sportsman) is not where it needs to be then do what you have to, but remember – ultimately – Father Time is a great, great leveler.

And sometimes you cannot prepare for it.

Indeed and this is not talked about a lot, you hardly ever “see it coming” in that regard.

And why do I say this now?

Well, a lot of people need to hear it (not necessarily Kohli – I just used him as a very public example and a sage one indeed) . . . whether or not they will listen is another story.

“Yeah, you’re listening, but you didnt HEAR ME!”

Hehe – Alonzo Harris again!

Anyway, if you look around you, what is happening today in the world, maybe this email will make perfect sense.

Maybe it wont.

So be it (either way).

Fitness wise, same thing my friend.

Those tough periods you have when you simply can’t get past sticking points.

Those long years where you slog to get the weight off, seemingly nothing happens, or it does, then it stops for a while, and so forth …

Those 50-70 pushup workouts that never hit a 100 . . .

And so forth.

The answer as always is persistence, Father Time, and of course, the long game – which if you think about it are all one and the same thing really.

And in terms of form, class, and what not – well, remember – DESIRE is permanent.

OBSTACLES, no matter how many, no matter real or imagined in your MIND – are temporary.

If you truly want it, you’ll find a way to get it . . .

So says Lucky Singh, hehe.

Dont EVEN ask me where that one came from, lips sealed!

And thats that, my friend.

Back soon!

Best,

Rahul Mookerjee

PS – If you TRULY want the 0 Excuses Fitness System, if you’re truly interested in learning about hidden fitness secrets NO-ONE will tell you except me, if you’re TRULY interested in just how the course gets such RAVE reviews, then you’ll find a way to get it, my friend. It’s that simple.

All yours truly can do is point you to the link – here it is – 0 Excuses Fitness.

The rest, I now leave up to YOU.

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