ta

Assume this. There’s a bowl, filled with water. Still. And then a water droplet falls in it. It created a sensation in the whole bowl. And then another came. And another. And another. And so on...

Looks good.

The sensation, the ripple effect in the still water. It surely is better than the still water. Compare this to the day’s position. I am the water in the bowl. Your wishes are the water droplets. They came. One after the other.

Looks good. Better, rather.

Who can tell that you step out of bathroom, drying your hair, some 4-5 hrs before your Birthday’s 12 o’clock, and then a loud “SURPRISE!” bazooka is fired on you.

Shocked? Aghast? Balled over?

It’s not even 12 now man! It’s still a day before! Don’t cheat the time! And then a huge gift is handed over to you, probably the bearer was already tired of carrying it and wanted to take the load off as soon as possible.

A gift is a gift, none the less, treasure it.

And then I could see my little world treasured in that big gift. I said, treasure what you get. Wasn’t a bad idea, after all, with all the surprise people eagerly waiting for my reaction. Am not sure what they assumed, but I was mesmerized. With happiness. With glad. With honour.
And then second set of surprise people started pouring in my living room. { Dude! My B’day’s tomm!!! } Food time! Aah! And then I realize am the host. Gotta take care of the guests before I myself even look at the food. Had to obstinate. No choice. Mafia rounds fired. One set of surprise people surprised the other set. And then the clock struck 12. And then that moment appears where you curse to have your B’day that day, for all the love these surprise people have for one, is poured in. Anything part of leg is the weapon to pour in the love, warmth.

Cut.

The one to feel the love is same. Atmosphere changes from the living room to a micro pond of murky water. Surprise people changes to expected ones. Time is 10 hrs since the last love potion was poured in. The rules are understood in zip-zap-zoom moment and the affection process begin, drowning & pulling out one in that water. 22 times. Last one was a splash.

Cut.

2 hrs prior to love bath. Expectedly unexpected moment happened. 40 people. More than half, unidentified. 1 icing structure on my left hand, knife on the other. Rain drops falling all around and one umbrella to support the food of everyone’s thought. And this sugar-coated baked flour helped me identify each of the unidentified figures around.

Cut.

11:30 P.M. of prev day. Chocolate covered baked flour is slaughtered for the prying eyes whose only motto to sing the melody was to welcome the moment of choco consumption moment.

Whatever was the cause or the reason, moments will always be cherished throughout one’s lifetime. Appreciation, is beyond the bounds of one’s help.

To begin with, first in queue is one’s sibling. They say, siblings are god’s gift. I say, mine’s a miracle. Then is one’s parents, who supported the sibling’s cause.

After this, one would like to thank, err, THANK each one of you who, in one way or other, physically present or mentally present, played part in one’s own day. The day filled with joy. The day filled with delight. The day filled with emotions.

And here I end this with William Shakespeare’s quote “I can no other answer make, but, thanks, and thanks.”

Take loads of care.

With Lots of Love.

Enjoy!

Trip to UK

Sitting on platform # 1 of Nizamuddin, Old Delhi, the train announcer’s voice crackling over the speaker every now and then, people rustling on the platform with curious look at a group of odd 44 people...more than half of which were already flat on the floor, dreaming happily about the week went by.So what do I talk about, the sleepless nights or the sleepy days, the yummy grub or the shooting star? There’s so much to share the experience, every available space seems Lilliputian.The moment everyone woke up, to realize that our bus’s reached Nainital, not a single eye shied away to praise the beauty around that was passing by every moment. The lush greenery and the speaking silence! And no wonder even after continuously travelling for two nights, most of us were still feeling afresh!

The tents for boarding took everyone’s joy to another level. And then the amazing meals following suit! I didn’t find a single soul from the camp who refrained from eating the yummy sweet-dishes! Infact the bunch was sad for not getting multiple servings!!

And then we come to the bath scene. Two bathrooms and so many people eager to have bath. The queue number booking started even before the participants could unpack their luggage!! And upon realizing that there’s no water heater, many got goosebumps there itself!! And once the job was done, am sure the only song that roamed in their head was “I’ve become so numb..!” The cold weather and the chilled water, the challenge was huge but the campers determined to have bath.. Alas! Mission Accomplished!!And then, the following day, was the day of getting in the skin of adventure sports enthusiast! A twin sitter W Kayak was handed in the arms of two people to row in the silent lake. As everyone got chance to get the practical feel of the basics of Kayaking, we realize that it’s not only the direction which you need to constantly think, but also need to have proper sense of understanding between you and your partner so that both your oars don’t collide. Oh by the way, chuck the water getting in your kayak, that’s natural. A tough job to handle, but practice is what will help you row!

How does the idea of crossing between two valleys, hanging from the rope, sounds like? Scary? Then you need to try Valley Crossing, or as its initial name Taroline Traverse. A rope between two valleys, water below, a pulley, a carabuna and a harness did the job to enjoy the manual valley crossing. Going halfway was easy, but the second half...ahh, tiring. Pulling yourself to the end was tough, heavy on the arms.
Rock climbing and rappelling turned out to be simpler than expected. Although once up, on the rock, rappelling down the rock properly, as advised, was tough. Most were wondering how to stand on the rock keeping your straight legs, which from another perspective was lying parallel to the ground! But once on the ground, the feeling was nice to know that rappelling is fun!

And how can I forget that day’s bathing session? Scarcity of water at the place where we were put up, after the first day’s parky water, the only chance to freshen up completely was on this day, at the waterfall ! Straight from the nature’s womb, the sight of gushing clear water was enough to bring back the lost energy from earlier sports endeavour. Once getting the feel of bathing in the nature, with the purest form of water, came the moment, which many still cherish. The moment was ‘Changing in the wild!’ Phew! Amazing feeling, I say.

Next day. Super amazing breakfast of paratha’s and sheera, hot chocolate and coffee’s. Understood the reason at the end of the day. Throughout the day we trekked, trekked and trekked! It was like treating a ‘bakra’ before halal! Jokes apart, leaving aside the tiredness, everyone enjoyed the trek from one mountain to another and by evening, back to square zero. And biggest blow came when after the whole trek, which we thought must’ve been some 15-20 kms, was only 8 kms!! Disaster! We walked so much, it has to be 15-20 kms! Calling it 8 kms will be a shame! Now can’t even boast in front of others that I trekked for 15-20 kms!!

The fun seems endless. It was like catching the horizon, the more you move towards it to catch, it moved away from you. But we knew, it’s just a dream. We’ll soon wake up. But there’s still time, lots of time. Cherish it!

In the end, all I want to say is, those were one of the most precious moments that came as tagged with WCNC. If you got the chance to be a part of this fun, you’re the ruler of ‘NC Moments’. And if you didn’t, don’t forget, there’s always a next time!
Cheers!

And yes, if you're still wondering, UK stands for Uttarakhand!

Three different chronicles, One destiny?

15^th Sep, ’08 1745 Hrs

KING OF GOOD TIMES….WHAT ABOUT THE SOLDIERS??

My current gtalk status message says ‘King of Good Times’. I’m. I feel happy without signs of blues to hamper my happiness. I feel good even with the signs of bad. I feel being the King of ‘Good Times’.

I go to college today. Most of the college time goes well. I still feel King of ‘Good Times’. Then comes Sudhu’s lecture. Two hours later, I wonder am I really a king of good times when other’s don’t get to be even soldiers of ‘Good Times’??

22^nd-24^th of Aug, Karnala. Our class trip for Sociology. Those three days went without our notice and the fun we all had, truly it’s gonna be in our thoughts forever. The first ever class trip, an outstation trip. Some enjoyed the atmosphere, some the surrounding, some the woods or some the foods. On our concluding day, we even went villages around our centre, walking on highway in a single file. Some even played with the children of Nepali workers in the centre we stayed. Day and Night they made us laugh, and smile, at some or point of time.

Today we come to know, that these children ‘used to’ go to school, where we went for sometime, daily by walking on the highway, the very same route we took that day. Now they are no more. Few days back, like any other day, they were on their way to school. A jeep trying to overtake another vehicle, went down the road, did not notice these kids walking. When the driver realized their presence, it was too late.

About 20 days ago we’ve walked the same road. We were all talking and laughing, walking in small groups. We never ever thought that such a tragic thing can take place over there. I still can feel walking there. I still can feel the chat I had with those kids. Now only I have is the memory…

4^th of Sep, K-scope, Sophia College. JPEG event. Varad, Jhanvi, Franco and I, the participants from Wilson College for the event. From the total of 3 hour duration for the event, we’ll were laughing and enjoying for most of the time, ‘trying to’ think out of the box. Event over and still for a long time we’ll were enjoying.

Today we come to know, Varad, a TYBMM student, yesterday went to bid a goodbye to an elephant-head god, which in local term is known as ‘Visarjan of Ganpati’. While doing so, unfortunately a huge statue of the god fell on his lower part of the body. Soon he’s been rushed to Jaslok Hospital where about 8 hours of operation is performed on him. After which, people outside come to know he has fractured most of his bones in the lower portion of the body, with a major crack in Pelvic bone and a puncture in his lungs. Doctors say even 15 mins delay would’ve caused his death. For at least 8 months he’s under complete bed rest, and it will take around 1 and ½ years to walk properly.

15^th Sep, FYBMM class, Sociology lecture. Topic of discussion, Education in India. On some question asked by a student, reply from the teacher includes these lines ‘You’ll are among the 6-7 % of the elite people among your age groups who have facilities to support your education’. I never knew that the ratio is so drastically imbalanced. All that comes in my mind is, being on the smaller part, what am I doing for the rest 93% people who do not have access to Graduation studies??

Three different chronicles, but one common destiny?

DO YOU BEG, ARE YOU A BEGGAR ?!

05-06-08 1447 Hrs

DO YOU BEG? ARE YOU A BEGGAR??

That's an offensive title, huh? I agree. So, what made me keep this title? No particular reason....I felt like keeping it, so kept it! :P

So, what's your idea of Begging? What?!? You don't beg? Alright, that's great! Then you're surely the person i want, to read this article.

Many a times while travelling, through trains or in our vehicle or any other place, we see "beggars" coming to us n beg for a rupee. And of those many a times, I’ve heard my co-passengers commenting something like this, "..such ($&^#$) beggars, such shameless people..." Very good. They should get an award for making such a comment, right?

If that's the idea of the word beggar, how do you explain this :

When in your childhood you begged your parents to get that toy, which you wanted badly.....but you called it your 'Stubbornness'

Then you begged your siblings to please, give you a piece of chocolate they were eating....but you called it part of your share.

When in your teenage, you begged your best friend to get the phone number of your good looking classmate....but you called it 'Crush'.

When in your college, you begged your colleagues to help you with your assignments n projects......but you called it as a part of College life.

When you grew older, you begged your boss for that few days holiday, to go out with your family......but you called it as 'Vacation'.

And when a beggar comes to you for your kindness to ask you for just a rupee.....you make lewd comments to that beggar?

The other day, me & my sis stopped at a local station's stall to refresh our self with a drink. In the meanwhile, a small boy, a less privileged one, comes to us n ask for a vada-pav. I ignored him a lil’, for the drink i was supposed to get, but the next moment I turned to him, he disappeared from his place n saw him going to another person to ask for a share of 'his' vada-pav. And then next moment I heard my sis asking me take this money n buy that boy a vada-pav. All i could reply back to her was....he's gone...

Earlier, whenever i jaunted around, in my free times, i happened to be followed by beggars for a rupee too. Almost everytime I used to take my wallet out n look for a rupee or 2 coin, which were my share of the bucks my parents gave as pocket-money, n if found, used to hand it over to the beggar. I felt sorry for them....but that's what I could do at that moment.

Then one day I went to one of my ol' pal, Naveen. We, as usual, did the usual talking. Then out of the blue he asked me, "..Supraket, tell me one thing. What would you do if a beggar approaches you, when you're just roaming around? Would you give him/her something or won't you?" I became dumb for a moment n all i could blubber out is, "..yeah, I’ll give a rupee or two, if i have it.." Then he replied back, "..I won't.." Exactly, even i felt the very same feeling about Naveen, what spoilt person is he, how ungenerous?! How can he make such comment? Then after a pause, he continued, "..Not because am ungenerous. But i think what will happen to them if i gave them the money? They'll again come to you n beg tomorrow.." I didn’t pay attention to what he said.

Then years later, when a beggar approached me, unlike years ago, i denied giving even a rupee, even when i had one. Later on i myself thought of the very same thing, should i give the money to beggars whenever they come begging to me? If yes, am being generous, if no then am stingy. But if i give the money, am spoiling the beggar more, as am giving him/her the hope that by begging also one can survive. Am giving them the hope that 1 of 10 people they go to beg, will definitely give them the rupee after looking at their condition. Am giving them hope that kind people can’t see their condition n by all odds will give them the money. Am giving them the hope that why to do any other job when you're getting money here too??

So what should one do about it? Rather than giving money like to this to the beggars, we should encourage them to work, do a proper job & earn. And not beg. We should collect money n create some plans to those under-privilege people. ...I don't know anything more. I need suggestions from you, can you support the life of those under-privilege people?

Also, (again!) many a times, i read in newspaper about how many goons force the unprivileged to beg n hand them the money. At first i was shocked n thought its cant be true. But got to hear such things from many sources. This probably was another reason why i stopped giving money to the beggars.

Getting back to that other day story of my sister giving money to the small boy who wanted to eat vada-pav, i kind of agreed to my sister. If believing what the media says, about how the goons force people to beg for money, giving something as kind n not cash to the beggars ain't all that bad too. But again, the question comes as to whether by giving something to the beggar, are you giving them the hope to beg more?

I agree, like the numerous times people commenting to be help the under-privileged people, just the way i just did, you'll think about this for a while, will work a little for it, n then, Zappak, Zukk n Zoooom, it's off your mind. Nevermind. At least, you thought about those people for a while... :)

What's the point of writing this article then? Only i can say is, "..Am just creating a lighthouse in the midst of a sea. Who knows, when a traveler nigh around n in need of some light n direction.."

Initiating the Head-Start

It's 1:19 AM clicking on my pc's clock, corroborating or rather witnessing the launch of my first ever blog, made available to the world, rather i'd say, as an open-source blog..!!

Got nothing more to write at the moment, but, lots are in the cards, in future for sure!
Also, like everyone else, it's the time when our parent's ask us to quit whatever we're doing the go off to doze...at this moment, my condition's no different, n i suppose, it's better i do as they say...

So excuse me, hmmmm, for minimum of some few hundred years for some greatest of the greatest blog ever written....in the meantime, enjoy with some mincer ones...