On recovery day, Monday, the start of the week, the back is seeming to be better. I can only hope that it holds up.

Looking forward to an easy time on feet tomorrow.

Ai mere watan ke logon was playing on the car stereo. The young boy and I had been alternating songs listening to everything from hip hop to this Lata Mangeshkar patriotic song from 1962.

He was learning it in his school curriculum. We both sang along.

Earlier in the morning, he did a quick five kilometres with me and then I carried on for a relatively longer effort. The back seemed to be holding up – or it was possibly an act of rebellious desperation that needed a good run to come through.

It did and it neatly rounded off the Sunday morning.

I ran today. I saw the sun rise at the track. I did a few intervals with the young boy. I was in discomfort but not pain.

Or perhaps the joy of running blocked it out. It worked, didn’t it.

That I ran today made me overjoyed, as if my whole being was yearning and thirsty for this purest of movements.

I can only hope that it gets better from here on.

This better not become a habit.

Missing another round of training was terrible.

But I spent a peaceful morning with the young boy stretching him and working on his mobility.

Later, receiving physiotherapy for my shoulder, I could only hope to be out of this soon.

Another sleepless night in pain. It’s extraordinary what pain can do and what it really means.

Another round of physiotherapy and even though it had been only a few days since this acute sensation, it was already far too long.

I ran a short loop with the young boy, delighted to run a few minutes, my mood if not my pain immediately alleviated.

Then I watched him train, the sun rising behind him, as he chased down a sprint and hurdles workout.

I missed the run today. The pain is evidently worse.

It seems after consulting with the physiotherapist that I would need to rest this till it gets better.

What to do.

The pain was worse today. I woke up several times wincing because I turned positions.

I would try to fix this at the track, I thought. Maybe the running motion would loosen up the muscle. It didn’t but it also did not make it worse.

I winced my way through an hour long run at the track – a group ten strong or more at some point. Between enjoying the amazing weather, the act of running but also feeling sharp pain, the morning was a mixed bag.

But the job was done. I worked out later in the hope that it would somehow, perhaps magically, snap into place.

Workout done, run done, now to get this fixed.

When I woke up this morning, I felt a certain twinge and pain in my left lateral muscle. As the day progressed – my day off – it got worse till I eventually put an ice pack on it which neither alleviated the pain nor made it worse.

I would have to wait until tomorrow to see how this would affect the running tomorrow.

This evening, at an event at Sunder Nursery, the morning run with the young boy crossed my mind many times.

Something about the way we started, his mood alternating between an effortless, easy mindset and feeling tired. Something about the way he wanted to push on – without me cajoling or convincing him. We talked about aircraft and airlines. About football and about running.

Later a friend, Kapil, sent a photo, unbeknownst to us. A pink sky, our silhouettes running down Shanti Path.

A sweet morning of Spring.

I had yet another easy run but the young boy had intervals. After a quick warm up, he began in lane one and I continued my excursion in lane nine.

I could tell that he either wasn’t giving his best today or was simply tired. So I decided to join him for a 400m repeat to race him. Perhaps a jump start of sorts. He smashed it although it took the wind out of him – and me.

With that highlight, I stood around near the kids doing hurdle practise, admiringly watching their soft landing and flawless jumping. It seemed effortless and so rhythmic. I should try at the lowest height, I thought. One day.

For today, it was time to lazily stretch and see the sky change colours to a bright morning.