Monochrome

I woke up at 12 noon today. Some of my best friends - Chris Ang, Chee Keong, Chee Kong and Wilson - from my previous workplace had arranged to go running at East Coast Park in the morning, but I had not joined them because I knew I would not be able to get up so early.

But they remembered me, and after their run, even drove by my place to pick me up for lunch. They were on an adrenaline high, having just finished 30-km. Even as we ate at the Rajah Inn at Tiong Bahru, they chatted enthusiastically about pacing, expected timings and running postures. I didn't say much; I wasn't in the mood to talk.

As I sat there with them, I began to slip into deep thought. I wanted to revert back to the old lifestyle where working hours were strictly between 8:30 am to 6 pm, where the working culture was strengthened by a firm belief in being pro-family, pro-sports and pro-health, where I worked hard and received due encouragement and recognition for the effort that I had put in, and where I had time after work for family, friends and social work. But nowadays, my life seems so different. I even dream about my work on some nights; there were no pleasant dreams.

As I listened to my friends' colourful conversations, I realised that my own world had become monochromatic.

When I came home from lunch, I read Daisiki's comment to my previous blog entry. I'm reminded of the "Footprints" poster. The words by Elijah in Coelho's novel again ring in my ears:

-- Hay momentos en que las tribulaciones se presentan en nuestras vidas y no podemos evitarlas. Pero están allí por algún motivo.

(There are moments in which tribulations present themselves in our lives and we cannot avoid them. But they are there for some reason.)