The end of the beginning.

"Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end; then stop."

Lewis Carroll, from Alice in Wonderland

Six weeks of the beginners course culminated yesterday evening with a Graduation Run of 3 miles (5 km). It was not something I thought I could do, the words floating in my head telling me it was too hard, the pain was too much and not worth the effort. It's funny how much you can push yourself when you see others around you doing the same. About twenty of us, all women, all beginners, did the run yesterday. And survived. After the run, we all got medals (my first in a sport, so you know how special this is!) and our blue 'Running Sisters' T-shirts which we shall wear with much pride at future races. It was a tremendous feeling to complete the run and I am pleased with myself. Our subscription to the beginners course entitles us to run with the Sisters till the end of August, so every Tuesday evening, I can wear my new T-shirt and test the pain. In the meantime, there's homework to be done during the week if I'm going to be able to keep up the pace. Today though, is a day of rest and savoring the moment; the medal gleams, just like the smile on my face when I look at it.

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Sunil Dutt has passed away in the last hour. A pity, for he was one of the more decent people in politics.