Farewell, friend.

It was circa 2005.
We were in a mall in Penang when we first saw you.
We fell in love with you immediately. We saw your potential. And I guess you saw through ours.
It was a tough time. You were way beyond our budget.
We were in our mid twenties, barely in our first year working. We had a little baby. Our car was pre owned and we rented a small house in a strange new place.
But we were determined. We had to have you.

So we  went out on a limb and had you on easy pay for 12 months. And you were well worth it.

It has been 8 great years since.

There were good and bad days, mostly good. On bad days, you would collect dust and be laced with cobwebs.

But you took me through rainy days. You took me through my first race. You took me through my first marathon. You took me through days I was too embarrassed to run outside. You took me through speed trainings. You took me through my subsequent pregnancies.
 Through it all.

There were times you were under- appreciated. You became a dread, a waste of space. But you braved through all those times, never letting me down.
You stood there, constantly reminding me to get a hold of my life. To own my body.

But as much as I love you, I have to let you go.
You have been of great service and with that I thank you.

I'm moving on, that's true. It's a fact you have to understand.

But I will not fail you. You will go on to other people who need you more. A diabetic friend in need of routine excercise to maintain her health. I hope she will be good to you. I hope she will give you more good days than bad. I hope you will be fully utilized. I hope you will not be downgraded as a place to hang clothes on rainy days.

You will go down in history, no worries. Your story will surely inspire some 9 year old to write a 'Saya Sebuah Treadmill' essay.
And even if in that essay I will be potrayed as an ungrateful person, that is the sacrifice I am willing to take for you.




Good luck with your new owner.

With lots of love,

JJ.