Morning Marvels

	The alarm bell rang with piercing insistence (incidentally, I must 
	tell you that no sound fills me with more dread and horror, than 
	that of my alarm. Even during the day, just the sound of that 
	fearful buzz can make the blood drain from my face!) and I gave 
	a groan and rolled over. 6:00 in the morning. I was in the middle 
	of my summer holidays and I could sleep all morning if I wished, but,
	instead, I had set the alarm for 6:00. Why was I putting myself 
	through this torture?

	Because, like almost everyone else in the world, I’ve decided to 
	shape up, or ship out, so to speak, and what better way to exercise,
	than by taking an early morning walk. And when I say walk, I mean 
	brisk strides, not the sort of half hearted stroll that many people 
	affect. They just saunter around for fifteen minutes, and then wonder 
	why they don’t have Naomi Campbell’s figure.
	
	Of course, I must admit, that for the first five minutes of my walk 
	I’m still on automatic pilot -- wandering around zombie style, eyes
	half closed, and thinking longingly of that bed I just left -- but 
	after that I tend to perk up and start looking around. And there are 
	so many interesting things to see, like the multitudes of eager, 
	tracksuit - clad children rushing to the swimming pool, basketball 
	courts and cricket fields (where do they get all that enthusiasm and 
	energy?); or the amiable cow that slowly makes a mo(o)ve towards you, 
	only to be sternly led off by its milkman (thank goodness! I’ve always 
	been terrified of cows. Yes, I know they’re gentle, placid creatures, 
	but they’re also related to bulls, and that in itself prejudices me 
	against them); and then of course, there are the dogs and their owners. 
	I’ve often wondered if the owners are taking the dogs for a walk, or 
	it’s the other way around. In the case of a fully grown golden 
	retriever and a thin twelve year old boy, I think you can guess who 
	does the leading, and who scampers after.
	
	On of the best parts of an early morning walk is the quiet. No trucks 
	thundering away, or buses honking symphonies at each other, or fruit 
	vendors loudly and incessantly advertising their wares Just quiet and 
	calm - the best sort of atmosphere for wool-gathering and dreaming, and 
	thinking. You can get your thoughts in order, put things in perspective 
	and plan out the day, all in that short time. Hey, don’t get me wrong - 
	I happen to be a centre - city girl, and I love the noises; I can’t 
	live without the lorries and shouts and sirens, and any extended 
	period of silence makes me uneasy, but half an hour of calm every 
	morning does wonders for jangled nerves.
	
	The city, early in the morning, is not only quiet, but also 
	refreshingly unpopulated. Bangalore is not an early morning city 
	(unlike Madras, which is up and raring to go even at 5:00am) and 
	the streets are wonderfully empty, except of course, for dog walkers, 
	exercisers and milkmen. The sight of so many empty streets can be 
	nothing but a balm for anyone living in one of the fastest growing 
	and most populated cities in Asia.
	
	You also get to see and appreciate all the small cogs that make this 
	urban machine work : the vegetable vendor on his way to the wholesale 
	market; the milkman; and the newspaper boy (how would you know who the 
	Prime - Minister - for - the - day is, unless you got your morning 
	paper?) and all the others.
	
	And there is the list of benefits of an early morning walk, so stop 
	moaning about your ‘thunder thighs’ and do something. Set your alarm 
	for 5:30am (stop groaning like that), put on some decent walking shoes 
	and take a deep breath (don’t you just dig that smog - free air?). This 
	walk will not only prepare you for the day ahead, but it’s also great 
	for the leg muscles. After all, you do want look like Naomi Campbell, 
	don’t you?
	
	
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	© 1997 Maya Chandrasekaran. Maya is an 18 year college student in 
	Banglore, India. Her first novel was published when she
	was 13. Since then, she has four novels and numerous articles 
	to her credit.'
	
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