I am not a pretty girl, I have known this since I was a child. Today, I have just graduated from college and am a newbie in the workplace. Apart from polite compliments, not many people say that I am beautiful. However, in the past year, I have heard more and more people compliment me on my temperament.
I remember that during the company’s onboarding training, a teacher gave us a class and asked us to select what things can be improved through acquired efforts. When asked about “temperament,” I’m the only one who raises my hand and agrees that this is okay. The trainer was surprised and asked me how I could do it. I answered loudly: I am full of poetry and reading. Reading can improve your inner self, while insisting on exercise and fitness can make your external image more confident and upright.
The trainer nodded doubtfully: This is indeed possible, but it requires a long time of persistence. I silently counted the time I kept running in my mind. If I really achieved a counterattack from an ugly duckling to a white swan, it should really be attributed to my long-term persistence in reading and exercising.
I have had a great interest in reading since I was a child. However, I went to elementary school and junior high school in a very closed countryside. There was a lack of various resources and facilities. It was difficult to access other reading materials except textbooks. Not having the opportunity to read books at the age when I have the most time to read is really my biggest regret so far.
This situation was solved very well in high school. In middle school, I was admitted to a key high school with excellent results. In that class where most of my classmates came from well-off families in the city, I ushered in the golden age of reading for the first time.
At that time, many classmates in the class ordered magazines at home, and I often borrowed them to read. At that time, "Yilin", "Youth Digest", "Looking at the World" and "Philosophy" became It’s the most beautiful break from the busy study life. I read almost every issue of the magazine two days before it is updated.
Not only that, I also often visit the school’s old bookstalls to buy old magazines and periodicals that I have not read before. And I love reading novels, and I will not let go of the serialization and updates of the most popular novels at the moment. The lights in the dormitory were turned off relatively early at that time, and after the power outage in the dormitory, reading novels secretly in bed with a flashlight was the happiest time.
The books I read in high school had a profound impact on me. I can still clearly remember the names and plots of many books, whether it is "The Da Vinci Code", which is very logical, or The emotionally delicate Rao Xueman and Tong Hua both had a great influence on my character development during the most sensitive period of youth development.
When I got to college, I was not able to get into the Chinese department I wanted to go to, but I still used a lot of my spare time to read. Because I no longer had the pressure of the college entrance examination and got rid of the shackles of exam-oriented education, my reading range was wider. Extensive.
If you like Japanese literature, you have read "The Tale of Genji" which introduces the customs and customs of the Heian period, as well as many books introducing Japanese history; if you like European and American literature, you have read "The Count of Monte Cristo" and "Letter from a Strange Woman"... If you like Audrey Hepburn, you have read all the articles introducing her and many related celebrity biographies. If you like Baby Anne, you will not let go of any of her essays and novels...
In addition to books, I have also read many Movies, and the way I watch movies is different from others. If you like a director, you must watch his works from all periods and then summarize his movie style.
So, during my four years in college, I watched a lot of Feng Xiaogang’s movies, almost all the movies directed by Shunji Iwai, the Yu Aoi series, and all the classics by the “King of Sunglasses” Wong Kar-wai. A masterpiece.
Reading, like movies, has a subtle impact on people. The books and movies I have read may one day forget their content, but their impact on me has already been profound. Get into my blood, become a part of me.
If I hadn’t kept running two years ago, I might still be that sickly, weak, weak-looking girl.
My health has not been good since I was a child. Before going to college, I was always a "drug addict." At 165cm tall, my weight has never been in the three digits. If I keep in this state, I will never be associated with the temperament duo.
Things changed in my junior year of college, when I thought of running for some unknown reason. Running is not an easy task in the northern ice city, because it is covered in ice and snow for most of the year, making outdoor sports impossible. People without willpower can easily give up.
Perhaps my only advantage to this day is that I have strong willpower and can persevere better than others. When I first started running, school started in September, and I ran 3-4 kilometers every day. I used the time after class in the evening self-study to run around the campus every day.
At first, a roommate ran with me, but within a few days she couldn’t keep going, so I had to run alone. At the same time, the running mileage also increased to 5 kilometers.
So I ran twice a week, 5 kilometers each time. After running for more than a month, one day I ran 10 kilometers. At that time, I would be covered in stinky sweat after running every day. The school was a public bathhouse, and it was very inconvenient to take a bath. I could only wipe the sweat off my body every night when I washed up.
Although it is very troublesome, every time I think about the pleasant feeling of sweating profusely after running, I still stick to the sport of running.
During that time, I basically maintained the frequency of running twice a week except when it was impossible to run in icy and snowy conditions. Later, in August of the following year, I participated in the first Harbin International Marathon and ran the entire 21 kilometers in 2 hours and 40 minutes. This was a milestone in my running history.
After running the marathon, more and more people knew that I ran. Every time I ran, some students would ask to run on the playground with me, and also asked me to teach them the correct running posture. I am very happy every time, as if I have really become their coach.
Today, although I have left campus and the running location has changed from the school playground to a park full of senior citizens, my love for running has not changed. Running twice a week is the most relaxing and happiest time for me. When I listen to my favorite music and breathe the fresh air, all my worries will be left behind.
What benefits does running bring me? I haven't calculated it specifically. All I know is that I was often sick before and looked very lethargic. My health is much better now. Although I am still very thin, I am now strong and muscular.
In addition to physical changes, running has also made me a lot stronger. Many difficult moments in my life that I thought I couldn’t survive were spent while running. "The more you sweat, the less tears you will shed." I think like this every time as I overcome one obstacle after another in my life.
Because I know that the sense of security that running brings me is achieved through my own efforts. This kind of self-confidence from the bottom of my heart cannot be replaced by any material.
Life is like a marathon. Some people run very fast in the first half, but in the end, they will lack confidence. And some people may walk very slowly, but they can also reach the end and find their own destiny. own scenery.
I know that I belong to the latter, so I stick to these methods that look stupid to others, and down-to-earth, step by step, I can become the person I want.
Reading and running do not show results in a short period of time. Many people give up after persisting, but life is so fair, and it will not mistreat every effort you make.
Always work hard towards your goals, little by little. Who says that an ugly duckling cannot become a white swan?