Christmas! Christmas! It's Christmas time in T&T. For many people, nothing beats a "Trinbago" Christmas. It is the best!
Alas, since Christmas 2014, the season and all it entails - good, bad and indifferent - is more about discipline. Not moderation or indulgence, discipline.
Prior to 2014, Christmas for this writer meant to eat, drink and be merry. A vegetarian/vegan for a few decades, well there has been a diet adaptation for quite a while now, the search for meatless, egg-less and milk-less presents a challenge but has gotten better as the years have gone by.
But beginning in 2015, I took on the challenge of starting and completing the T&T International Marathon (TTIM) in an effort to raise awareness and funds for the T&T Olympic Committee (TTOC) #10golds24 athlete welfare and preparation fund. The marathon is usually held the last Sunday in January which in reality means the 26.2-mile endurance event is run off approximately a month after Christmas. Whose brilliant idea was it again to do the marathon walk? So much for thinking things through.
Yikes! That means a total lack of self-discipline will come back to haunt you anywhere and at any time between mile 12 and 26. Unrestrained enjoyment at Christmas time will result in a difficult marathon journey.
Yes! Eat, drink and be merry will mean entering the torture chamber between the Caroni plains, the Southern Main Road, Eastern Main Road, South Quay, Wrightson Road, Colville Street or Arapita Avenue and the finish line. Make your pick!
So what's the alternative? Consider the stark reality that eat, drink and be merry isn't your friend. Add in Christmas day and New Year's day training session and all of a sudden the marathon becomes a test of resolve.
Last Saturday, a 12-mile training walk with Robert Dumas of CNC3 sports anchor fame, the verdant and lush Chancellor Hill became a required rite of passage ahead of TTIM day. Clarity of thought, the TTOC marathon walk crew embrace of the 26.2-mile marathon walk is driven by a sense of mission and purpose.
In the height of jingle bells, parang, Ponche de Creme, sorrel, ginger beer and black cake and all else that makes a "Trini" Christmas such a wonderful time of year. The shadow of the 37th edition of the TTIM to be held on January 27, looms large.
Marathon day coming, push aside that extra serving of pastelle and yet another glass of sorrel. Marathon day coming!