The journey is the destination

Nina threw her racket down in anger. She could not bear to lose a single match. It was only 10 years later that she realized that the journey was more important than the destination and that winning was not everything.

Every morning at 6: am a young girl with her dark hair tightly plaited entered the local sports centre wearing track pants and tightly laced sports shoes. Behind her would enter a young man who always had a slightly amused grin. Anyone could see the resemblance between the father and the daughter. The girl would then quickly take out a table tennis racket and ball and would stand excitedly at one end of the table. Her father would take his place at the opposite end and teach the little girl how to play the game. Anyone watching them play could immediately say that the girl loved the game. Her eyes would glimmer and she would have her forehead scrunched up in concentration as the ball bounced back and forth over the table. This ritual continued and people grew accustomed to seeing this duo every day. Very soon, Nina Kapoor the once scrawny little beginner blossomed into an amazing table tennis player. As trophies began to pile up, so did the praises for her. To everyone in her small locality, she was a champion.

But right now, she felt like quite the opposite. "Nina, its okay beta. You played really well" said Aman Kapoor, Nina's father in an attempt to console his daughter. "It's not okay Papa" said Nina through sobs. "This is the second time that I've lost to Sandhya. Now I'm sure that I won't even be considered to take part in the upcoming championship!". "Don't be silly Nina! Sandeep sir knows exactly what you're capable of. All players have bad days" replied her father. "Now go sleep. You must be tired". As Nina trudged up the stairs, she tried to erase the memory of Sandhya's triumphant grin from her mind. Nina loved the adrenaline rush she got while playing TT, but what she loved even more was winning. She had been the centre of attention for a long time. Adults praised her and other children envied her. She couldn't bear it when she lost. She just couldn't.

The next morning, Nina woke up groggily to the sound of her alarm. It was December and while all her classmates were at home enjoying their holidays, Nina was up training. She looked out of her window and saw a thick blanket of fog covering the earth. It was as if she was up in the clouds! Nina sighed to herself as she slowly got up.

"Come on Papa! We'll be late otherwise!" said Nina frantically gulping down a glass of juice. "Calm down Nina!" said her mother laughing. "No time for that Ma! Sir will put up the names of those who have qualified for the tournament today!" said Nina running out of the door. Upon reaching the sports centre, butterflies filled her stomach as she brushed away the fear of not qualifying. "I'll see you later Papa!" she said not bothering to look back. Nina ran straight to the notice board and held her breath as she searched for the list. She exhaled slowly. There it was. "Nina Kapoor". She had qualified! She rechecked the list and much to her dismay, she saw Sandhya's name on it. "Oh well" she thought to herself. "I'll just have to prove that I'm better". With that she proceeded to train.

For the next few weeks, Nina trained hard and excelled at the tournament. She was on cloud nine when she beat Sandhya to retain the title for the second time. She gloated about it to her friends. But, alas her happiness did not last! On a fateful February night, everything changed.

10 years later....

Nina awoke to sound of birds chirping. She had the day off from training. She was only 21 years old, but she knew exactly where she wanted to go- The Olympics. It was the 15th of February and Nina's eyes stung with tears as she remembered what had happened 10 years back on this very day. It was like someone had gutted her when she heard her mother say "Pappa has cancer". Those 3 words changed her life. She had been both confused and angry at the same time. Nina had felt like God was taking away everything that she loved. She buried her head in her hands as she remembered how weak and fragile her father had become. Leukemia had made him vulnerable and weak. Nina hated everyone who had healthy fathers. She resented the feeling she used to get seeing her once strong father so helpless. It had broken her heart seeing her father like this. Nina always felt guilty when she thought about how selfish and mean she had been. She had never stopped once to even think about what her mother might have been going through. The doctors had said that it was inevitable and that there wasn't any way that they could save him. But, even as she looked at her father's dead body, she couldn't help but have hope that everything had just been a nightmare. Nina remembered her father telling her "One day you will make it to the Olympics". At that moment she had promised herself that she would do it for her father.

A doorbell interrupted her thoughts and Nina quickly got up to answer the door. It was her mother. No words were needed to express their feelings. She just hugged her mother tightly. "Nina" said her mother gently."Your father left this for you a long time ago. He made me promise that I would give this to you only 10 years after his death". Her hand quivered as she held out a brown envelope to Nina. Nina quietly took the envelope from her mother as tears streamed down her face."How could he have known that he was going to die?" asked Nina. "I don't know Nina" replied her mother choking back tears. "I should go now. I'll call you later. Nina just nodded as she watched the door close. She gently stroked the envelope as if she was afraid to damage it. She hesitantly opened it to find a letter. She smiled through her tears as she saw her father's handwriting. She slowly read the letter:

Dear Nina,

I am sorry for the pain I put you through. If you are reading this then I am no more. I am sure that my little bud has blossomed into a beautiful flower. I want you to know that I meant for this letter to reach you only now, the only reason being that the time is right. Nina, someone once said "success is a journey not a destination. The doing is more important than the outcome". All your life, you have trained hard. While your friends were obsessed with princesses and pirates, you were obsessed with TT. I have always been proud of you Nina and I always will be. Nina, all your life you have worked hard. There is nothing wrong with that, but once in a while, stop and smell the roses. Either ignore the journey or make the most of it. Enjoy the process more than the outcome. Appreciate the journey and all the fantastic things that happen along the way. I know that you have dreamed of being an Olympic champion but always remember that the journey makes you who you are. Someone rightly stated that we don't read mysteries to find out who did it. Rather, we read it for the thrill of not knowing. Similarly, what's the use of going on a trip if you don't enjoy it? What's the use of gulping down food if you don't taste it? Once in a while, just stop, look around and take in everything. If you are too caught up in where you want to go, you just might lose your way. Nina, just remember that I'll always be watching over you. It doesn't matter if you're an Olympic champion or not. You're still my champion.

Love,

Pappa

Nina gently caressed her fingers over the writing. Through her tears she smiled up to heaven and silently thanked her father for making her a fighter. She realized that in the grief of the past few years, she had neglected to enjoy her life. She had only focused on getting to her destination. Now, she finally realized that her journey, no matter how painful it had been had ultimately made her stronger. She finally realized that winning was not the most important thing. It mattered how you reacted to different situations. Who knew what the future would hold. Maybe, just maybe she may stand on an Olympic podium one day. But now, she needed to stop and smell the roses...

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