You don’t learn to count your blessings until you are really up against it. I never cared about my health much. Until, one day, totally out of the blue I became obsessed with the idea of getting that perfect “slim/trim” figure. Being fit and healthy was no longer enough.

Burgers stuffed with cheese were soon replaced by coffee with no cream and sugar. So possessed was I with the idea of a perfect figure that I started doing away with my dinners. Before I knew, I had lost a lot of weight. Then I stood before the mirror. I was no mannequin, looking anything but fit. Later, the scales and the waist tape confirmed that I was... emaciated. Anorexic. Tests revealed my haemoglobin count had plummeted.

At the farewell party (yeah, before my fated trip to the hospital), I gobbled up rich, creamy ice-creams, buttered cucumber sandwiches and a couple of glasses of apple juice. No more dieting.

Oftentimes at the hospital, when all my friends and family members left, leaving me alone in the ward, I felt very alone. Ruing my stupid choice, I no longer hungered for a fairy figure, just a warm bear hug. Some love from my loved ones.

I returned home after a-hundred-and-twenty days in hospital. But I was to visit Joe, my dietician, every day without fail. For a change, I was trying to put on some weight. On my first visit, I spotted in his lobby an idol sporting a bag with the inscription: Fat people are harder to kidnap. Talk about irony. Joe became a very good friend of mine, listening to every single word I said even while he was working on my diet chart. He prohibited me from taking part in any sport, which I missed for I was a very active member of the school track team. Instead, McDonald’s became a regular haunt for the two of us. In no time, he had managed to revive my old love for food.

Then, the D-day arrived. I hesitantly mounted the scales. Joe’s eyes were firmly fixed on the metre. I was apprehensive and praying, ho-ping someone, somewhere, was listening. Had months of hard work paid any dividend? It was the moment of truth. Time seemed to

have stopped. After what seemed like an eternity, Joe looked at me and smiled. Teardrops streamed down my cheeks. I had gained over fifty pounds!