When life turned full cycle again during the lockdown

They say a real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out. True to this adage and not so long ago, one of my childhood friends came back to impart some activity to my lockdown-driven sedentary lifestyle, the bicycle. Images of last year’s lockdown were still fresh in the mind when the second Covid wave swept us into another round of lockdown. Though the situation is improving now, my loyal friend looks on hoping I will give it company as the gym reopens. I’ve silently given my word to it.

Last year too, when the Covid cases started declining in November and December, it made us believe that we were slowly headed towards normalcy, including the quotidian gym sessions. Being ungrateful, as most of us are to old friends, hitting the gym made me forget the buddy who had kept me fit during the lockdown.

The lockdown acted as a catalyst to rekindle my lost love for cycling as it certainly did for many others, going by the surge in the number of cyclists around. Childhood memories of buying a cycle came riding back when I bought a bike last year. I still remember how my uncle gifted me a bicycle on my 14th birthday and overnight I became the owner of two cycles.

Euphoric and proud of my two possessions, I would take the older one to school and keep the new one to flaunt and race with neighbourhood peers.

The fervour of a new bike, coupled with childhood memories, revved up my cycling sessions for a few miles every day. Riding through the town, I observed the changes around and cherished the places that had stood the test of time. I was overjoyed and started motivating others to take to cycling. A friend also bought a cycle and joined me on the morning rides. I started enjoying cycling so much that I even started going to work on it, drawing appreciation from many.

But as things started improving by the year-end and places started reopening, I’m guilty of parking my bicycle in the storeroom and getting back to the gym. The cycle started gathering dust and its tyres were deflated. I would look at it indifferently. But when the second lockdown was imposed and the gyms were closed, my friend asked me if it’s time to get the cycle back on track.

So, life came full circle for us and our bicycles as we started pedalling our way to health again. One day while riding through a deserted stretch, my friend reminded how its old friends who come to our rescue, while new ones head out for their own safety.

This time, we have made amends towards our endearing friend; we have promised to keep our date with cycling even as gyms reopen.

THOUGH THE COVID SITUATION IS IMPROVING NOW, MY LOYAL FRIEND LOOKS ON HOPING I WILL GIVE IT COMPANY AS GYMS REOPEN. I’VE GIVEN MY WORD TO IT