【Original】My Connection with Table Tennis and Sports

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The last edit to this post was made by eric420 on 2017-12-22 at 09:59. I remember first coming into contact with table tennis in my first year of high school, in 2002 – that was 15 years ago. Life in high school back then was quite tough; my high school was one of those rural schools in Hebei, where the academic workload was extremely heavy and there were few forms of entertainment. In an era when computers and mobile phones hadn’t yet become common, playing sports and listening to music were the only forms of leisure apart from studying. Back then, the table was placed on the concrete surface outside the classroom; there was no net in the middle, and a few bricks were placed there at an awkward angle. That was my first encounter with table tennis. Playing table tennis outdoors is greatly influenced by the weather conditions – wind, rain, extreme cold, and heat. Although the weather poses challenges, the students’ enthusiasm for playing table tennis remains unchanged. As soon as class is over, they rush outside to get at the tables; it’s really a race to claim a spot there. Thankfully, playing a few rallies on the table satisfies their desire to play. Back then, there were no strict rules for playing the game, nor any specific strategies; all that mattered was to keep playing the ball. No one taught us anything – we had to figure it out on our own, with each person having their own way of playing. It was more like finding joy in the hardships. Looking back now, it’s full of memories. During college, due to my passion for table tennis, I took a break from playing it for two semesters. The conditions there were much better back then, but with the impact of mobile phones and computers, as well as starting to date, people’s enthusiasm for table tennis seemed to decline significantly. At that time, one’s passion for table tennis came purely from love for the sport itself. After graduating and starting work, one has to learn the skills required for that job, go out for meals, deal with personal problems, find a place to live, get married, and so on. As a result, there’s less and less time for playing table tennis, but that doesn’t diminish the love for it; whenever time allows, I go to the gym to play a bit, to sweat a little, and to recall those memories related to table tennis – those people and those moments, including you and me.