How do you get the best of yourself out?

This morning when I woke up, I saw Tristan's post on Facebook. I met Tristan at the Gobi March this year. It was very touching and I was in tears.

So I started doing a little bit of quote search. This is one which I quite like:-

"The answer to the big questions in running is the same as the answer to the big questions in life: do the best with what you've got."

I never really hiked much until some 10 years ago. My mother used to enjoy hiking but I hadn't been much of a company. 15 years ago, she got alzheimers' and I started to hike with her at the early onset. I was hoping that even though she could not manage anything intellectually, she could at least walk enough to keep herself healthy. Also, there was just me and her and mother nature. Nobody would judge her by her uncoordinated and unexplainable gestures and language. But even that luxury was gone soon. After my mom lost her mobility, so did my dad since he had to take care of her 24/7.

I was born anaemic and blood pressure is lower than most people. When I try to run or go uphill, I feel dizzy. This mental programme is deeply embedded in me for decades. For some reason, I felt a big urge to break these rules this year. I decided that I want to train myself for running. I don't know how I can get rid of the feeling of dizziness and weakness, but I have signed up for competitions, signed up for a coach and started reading books about marathons. I really want to give more than what I've got. But why? I guess the more I think about my life and how fortunate I am, the more I feel like bringing out the best of myself or more than what I think I can achieve. Or perhaps it is not about myself, but an inspiration reminding me to give the best of myself for others. If I can bring out this energy in me, I will be able to give more meaningful service for the rest of my life. I also want to devote this to my parents, to thank them for giving birth to me and for raising me to become a courageous and compassionate person.

Follow your heart and it will take you to where you belong.

This is Bagan, an ancient city located in the Mandalay Region of Myanmar. From the 9th to 13th centuries, the city was the capital of the Kingdom of Pagan, the first kingdom to unify the regions that would later constitute modern Myanmar. During the kingdom's height between the 11th and 13th centuries, over 10,000 Buddhist temples, pagodas and monasteries were constructed in the Bagan plains alone, of which the remains of over 2200 temples and pagodas still survive to the present day.

Mary Gadams said Myanmar is the kind of place where Racing the Planet would like to have a roving race. Destiny has first brought me to this country since 2008. The experience I gained from working here and interacting with the people has to be one of the most enriching life experiences I have ever had. From building schools, disaster relief, post-disaster reconstruction, I have seen beauty, love, happiness, compassion, kindness, patience, wisdom and inner strength. This country has never ceased to amaze me. I would be so happy to help organize a race to share all these with the RTP community. It's also a coincidence that I finally have bitten the bullet to start my own micro project there, working on a holistic village model benefiting both education and livelihood in rural villages.

The feet are going to where the heart is.

I was chatting with Gavin, one of our Gobi March volunteers, who runs a travel agency business in Kathmandu, Nepal. I was telling him how I had spent the weekend, hiking in the mountains. I said I had enrolled in a 78km challenge in October and plan to do another 100km next February and see if I could handle. If yes, I might consider signing up for Gobi March next year. 2013 is the 10th anniversary for our Foundation as well as for Racing the Planet events, and it would be very meaningful if I can join and run for charity. Gavin said that since I have a plan, it will happen. I said whether that happens or not, is God's plan not mine. Gavin said if I have God in my heart and mind, that is my plan too. I said yes. You got me there, young man.