El Fin 2024
Closing note
It’s time. Time for the calendar to flip over, for a new number to make us feel older. Time to drift closer to preferring ginger lemon tea over gin, and make treaties with ourselves about what we’ll eat and do for the next 365 days. Time for a blazing last lap, fuelled by food, drinks, and love, before we have to see the new number and make those treaties.
While I don’t want to intrude on your long weekend, I wanted to write a note to you.
Firstly, thank you. For reading, commenting, sharing my essays, and pouring such generosity towards me, far more than my ramblings might deserve.
Most importantly, thank you for giving me your time. Time, as resource or gift, is precious. We are inundated and overwhelmed with stuff. Reels, memes, music, movies, news, Netflix, Sitharaman, Singham. And that’s just the screen.
There is enough on your plate already to make time for one more source of content.
The thing is, I write for myself. Unless I’m commissioned to cover Pakistan vs Hong Kong in a tournament with an attendance of five (four of whom are cows), I like to write about topics and people I care about. I’ve used Substack to exclusively indulge in that. Maybe the algorithm loves LinkedIn-esque dissertations, like literally every platform now. Maybe I should tell you that travel opens the soul, and the soul is made of beans, and that you can’t spell beans without “be” - which is clearly a sign from up above to chase your goals. Or perhaps I’d provide and accrue more value if I just regurgitated Jay Shetty quotes as listicles.
That I get to write 2,500 words on Ravichandran Ashwin’s mind and Carlos Alcaraz’s body, and find you engaging with both, is a privilege I do not take for granted.
So, thank you. It means the world to have you around.
Secondly, Lines on the Grass should be more than just a weekly column. I’m hoping to expand it into two editions per week starting sometime next year. I have a couple of things in mind, but I’m keen to hear from you too. What would you like to read about? I am still figuring out what might work best, so happy to hear all suggestions!
With that done, time to click publish. I wish you the best NYE and a lovely 2025, filled with all of your favourite things.
Cheers.
P.S. - There won’t be an issue next Sunday. Be back on January 12th.
Discovering your substack has easily been one of the highlights of my year. It’s elevated my Sundays. Thanks for all the great writing, looking forward to more next year.
Happy new year to you, before it starts wearing age like the muffler in winter. Please continue to write on sport, it's wonderful writing. Pleaae do write on whatever takes your fancy - food, culture, politics, books, music, people - will read it all.