The first push

Today, the first time I lifted Ranjana’s car, I got such a severe cramp in my left side. This cramp was not like a running cramp. A running cramp is a sharp pain, but it does not cover the whole area. This cramp that I got while I was lifting covered the whole muscle, like a round biscuit.

Although in terms of weight this lift was supposed to be 60 pounds less than when I lifted the last car, this time it seemed heavier. When I succeed in lifting, at the very first push it goes up. But if it does not go up when I first push, then it will never go up. There is no hope. It will only sink. So if on the very first jerk it does not go up, then there is no hope. This applies to both the car and my one-arm lift.

— 21 September 1986