Going for gold in 'Olympics of Life'<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): It takes something like the Olympics rolling
\naround every four years to make one sit up and realize what a
\ncompetitive arena the world has become.<\/p>\n
Insurmountable challenges and unbelievable obstacles are
\novercome and there is constantly someone breaking a record by
\njust a few hundredths of a seconds, someone lifting or hurling
\njust a few more kilograms or reaching out for just that tiny bit
\nmore.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, for the more ordinary people caught up in mundane
\ndaily activities, the mere mention of more competition is quite
\ndaunting -- as if there were not enough challenges to be overcome
\nin our very own, custom-made \"Home Olympics\".<\/p>\n
Life is one big Olympics which requires staunch verve and
\nevery dreg of undiluted patience to meet the unpalatable
\nchallenges that it serves up in steaming hot platefuls every day.<\/p>\n
One can find the Olympic spirit of competition right on the
\nvery roads of Jakarta, where traffic congestion and chaos require
\none to sharpen the senses and reflexes on par with a judo
\ncompetitor, where the singular goal in each one's mind is to get
\nahead of the car in front and primarily only to win. Making a U-
\nturn on Jl. Kelapa Gading requires the skills of a brain surgeon.<\/p>\n
There is also the Olympics of the social elite, where a
\nvalorous effort is required to maneuver into social setups and to
\nbe seen with the right people. It is not important whom they see
\nbut whom they are seen with.<\/p>\n
Then there are the \"Political Olympics\", the challenging
\ncompetition for those political power. The intoxication of power
\nis as forceful as a nuclear fissure. Getting ahead of those vying
\nfor the high chair takes more willpower and steadfastness than
\nthose competing in the 10-kilometer run. Any obstacles on the way
\nneed to be met and dealt with as just one goal in sight.<\/p>\n
And then there is the Olympiad run by the housewife. She faces
\nthe daunting 100 m hurdle race of making the paycheck stretch for
\na whole month. While competing, she has to constantly conjure
\ninnovative and mouthwatering food the family would love to come
\nhome to. The end of the month is the climax -- while an athlete
\nquickens his pace to break through the winner's ribbon, her
\ncookery skills are challenged to a point that prompt her to
\nconsider dying the potato cutlets brown and passing them off as
\nburgers.<\/p>\n
The end of the month also sees her getting rid of the
\nvoluminous stack of something she picked up obsessively in a
\npromotion drive. A friend panicked at the time of the crisis and
\nshopped for a whole trolley load of egg noodles. \"If the world
\ncrashes and supermarkets close down at least we can eat noodles,\"
\nshe said.<\/p>\n
She was left with the challenge of serving all those noodles
\nin ingenious and innovative ways or, in other words, getting rid
\nof them. She learned how to make those cute crunchy fried noodle
\nbaskets. She serves chicken a la noodle baskets, cap cay (stir-
\nfried vegetables) in noodle baskets, fried rice in noodle baskets
\nand sometimes noodle baskets with chili sauce.<\/p>\n
While the Olympics winners receive a gold, silver and bronze
\nmedal, all the \"Home Olympic\" medals rightfully to the mother and
\nfull-time housemaid, juggling housework, kids, job, husband and
\nsocial obligations in pristine Olympic spirit. However, their
\nmedals are not rotund metal orbs but exist in the form of a
\nclean-licked casserole dish or dessert bowl and a gurgling
\nsatiated burp after the lights are off.<\/p>\n
An Olympic weightlifter closes his eyes in concentration and
\nstakes every cell in against the heavy weight he is going to lift
\nabove his head. He raises it, with his breath nearly bursting in
\nhis lungs, before dropping it back. On another part of the
\nplaying field is handicapped man whose lungs are bursting from
\nthe effort it has taken to get himself out of the wheelchair and
\nonto the booth where he works as a ticket collector. But the
\ncrowd does not cheer the relentless effort of this hero.<\/p>\n
While keeping an eye on the final medal tally in Sydney, let
\nus take a minute to appreciate the work of some other heroes in
\nour lives -- the volunteer workers of the United Nations and the
\nRed Cross, the paramedics who rush to save accident victims, the
\nfirefighters who brave the flames to save people -- the list of
\nthe heroes is endless. And while acknowledging some of the
\nfrivolous Olympics that people are caught up in, let us not lose
\nour perspective and forget to applaud those heroes whose life and
\nwork make them the true champions in the \"Olympics of Life\".<\/p>\n
-- Pavan Kapoor<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/going-for-gold-in-olympics-of-life-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }