the final plan

Me, Mangesh and Aakanksha plan to start at 5-30 every morning and then go on till 9-00 maybe with two ten-minute breaks in between and then take a breakfast break. Sarita and Swati will join us at that time and after tea and some stuff to eat we will amble off again with them round 9-30 or 10 and keep walking albeit a bit slower till 11-30 by which time we expect to cover at least 30 kms . At this point the car will pick us up and take us the nearest motel room where we would bathe, do our yoga stretches and get a nap after lunch. The car would drop us off round 4-00 pm at where it picked us up and we will then walk till 7-00 pm to complete our daily grind.

On the day on which I practice fully I do 25 kms – which though much less than the 40kms or 50kms targeted during the final walk is still enough since it is accomplished after 6-8 hours of office and often with only 5 hours of sleep at night. In the walk we plan to sleep 2 hours by day and another 8 by night –plus there will be the healthy food, the continuous intake of nimbu paani , ( and hopefully the wife in a pampering mood )and the total absence of stress- all of which should help increases the timing to 8 hours.

We originally planned to start on the 18th morning but then one of our friends chipped in with the info that it was amavasya and hence a bad day to start a good thing. I don’t actually believe in all this stuff but then Swati does- as also Sarita and both felt that since we know it is an inauspicious day why start!!!! We could have started on the 19th which is a good day to begin but then it would upset the schedule a lot since we plan to return back the day before Dussera ( Mangesh Swati have major Dussera celebrations at home) and starting late would leave us with no buffer, which at one day is too lean anyway. It could rain , a calf muscle could strain, someone could fall sick and any number of possible mishaps occur.

Now we start at 4-00 pm tomorrow . All will assemble at our house, break the coconut and start for Apoorva’s house . Whereas Sarita , Swati and Mangesh will just symbolically walk and then head back home I and Aakanksha will walk three hours to get there. They will join up there later , celebrate Sarita’s birthday (she turns 51 on the 17th) and sleep over. Next day morning as we head back to the road Sarita and Swati will come back home ( as they are working on Friday) and join us only on Saturday morning when Rohit - Apoorva will drop them to where we are.


Gossh its scaryyy. But I had no option had I?? When I was fervently praying for Sarita’s recovery and this thought flashed across my mind, we both knew I had thought this , did we not - God and I. Could I have then faced him and my self if I had suppressed the thought and pretended it had not occurred- and yet prayed on. Could I say “Please Please God take care of her and sorry yaar but I can’t put myself to the inconvenience of a walk of 400kms but you do your job – OKKKK!!!” So if the thought occurred I HAD to commit to it. And once committed where was the question of going back on it ?

Going back can be easy “Ohh God I would have but you know my knees hurt !! Business God business - who will take care of it ? I know I was reckless but you are forgiving are you not – so let it be.” Or the perennial favorite “Of course I am going to do it God but I did not mention a time period did I? Just you watch what I do “ and then wait for the next mishap to happen and then cry and say “ I know I let you down Godd but this time- just this one more timeee”

Whatever I did and said He would know and maybe even forgive me- but I would know too and I am not a forgiving guy- at least not for myself. It is not the fear of what God would do that scares me- just the fact that when I next peep into myself to talk to him , he just may not respond. If I have to face myself I have got to do what I said I would. And I don’t want Neelesh telling me all my life I let him down.