Didn’t see it coming
Visual history of my weight gain
In the year 2004 I got my first computer and with it came a webcam. Till then, the whole idea of me capturing something in motion was an uncharted territory. We had cameras with a roll which would only capture still moments. Buying a Handycam or a camcorder was not yet a common thought amongst the public.
So I started recording. Sometimes talking to it as if it was my only friend. Sometimes capturing silly things to make my friends laugh. In all, it was something entirely new to me, and I enjoyed it.
Jan 4th 2005
It was my 15th birthday, and I was all excited. As always my mom and dad got me a cake, and I was about to cut it. That’s when my dad said, “Why don’t we cut it in front of our webcam!” — One of the best decisions of my life. We had a tall stool, so we kept the cake on it, and the rest is what you see below.
I was fascinated to have a video of my birthday as a teenager. Sharing a video back then wasn’t as easy as it’s today. So, whenever a friend would visit me, I would show them the video. It’s quite nostalgic now that I think about it, but what thrills me is that we had no problems shifting the venue from hall to my room to record a video. It may seem funny now. Because today it’s as convenient as taking out your cell phone and recording something. Back then it felt like magic.
Jan 4th 2006
My 16th Birthday and I had entered 10th grade. The exams were nearing, and I was tense. As always my parents got me a cake and made sure that they fulfilled all my needs. We decided to cut the cake in front of the webcam like the previous year. Thereby ending up making the video you see below.
Huge waves of nostalgia hit me when I see these now and also the quality of the video makes me wonder where we have collectively come as human. It has been 11 years now, and things have changed drastically!!
Jan 4th 2007
My board exams weren’t as great as I expected but I managed to fare through. My parents as always supported me and helped me out. With high spirits like every time, they got me a cake. We had made it a ritual by now to celebrate our festivals and birthdays in front of the webcam. Here is the video
At the end of the video, my dad gets me a math book. He always wanted me to go to IIT, but destiny had something else in mind for me. That’s a story for some other day perhaps.
Wait a minute. There is more to all this than what meets the eye.
When I looked back at these videos, apart from reliving the memory, I also noticed something. I noticed that as the years passed, I had changed physically. I had put on weight. This is the time when I became what I am now. Obesity knocked on my door, and even though I did not want, it seeped in through the gaps. I didn’t realize this while I was living through it but now that I see snapshots of my life on one particular date every year; I realized that this is where I should have fought back. This is where I should have given a thought about myself and done something about this problem which I am struggling to cope up with now.
Change is gradual
Nothing ever changed with the blink of an eye. I did not become 118KG in a day. It took me ten years to come here, and the videos above are the proof. Now that I know what went wrong do I wish to do something about it? Believe me; I have tried. It’s not easy, but I know it can be done. The mistake I made till now was to expect the results soon. I now realize that it happens gradually. Just because I did not lose much in a month doesn’t mean that I give up. As the saying goes “Rome was not built in a day” I believe I have to stick to a mantra that “Fat cannot be shed in a day.”
I hope after ten years from now I would be able to post videos about how I lost my weight and be glad that I decided to do something about it.
Thanks for reading. I hope you could learn something from this. Don’t lose hope; you can do it.
Special thanks to Deepak Varadharaj for enlightening me about these long forgotten videos
