A Story Untold...

I don’t know whether it happens to all of you out there, but it does happen to me quite often. I am not talking about seeing dead people or about having premonition of the things that will occur in the future. The vision that I am trying to emphasize here is the dream that one dreams, but when you wake up from your slumber the dream is no longer hazy but is so limpid that you want to believe it. I am just lucky enough that I have started dreaming again because even if they are bizarre they leave you with a thought for the next entire day. I would too like to describe a story that I happen to unveil from the innermost corridors of my mind.

A rich widow, an unsuccessful writer and a crippled horse- these are the characters around whom my story revolves. Couldn’t figure out the names of the initial characters but the horse was named “Jack Daniels” by his master. As uncanny as the name may sound stranger are the proceedings ahead.

The rich widow, as of now let’s just address her as Mrs.X was the typical middle-aged woman who had lost her husband to a plane crash and now was spending her time and her money on champagne, caviar and celebrations about nothing. Life seemed completely meaningless and futile. Assuming the responsibility of handling the multi-billion business seemed like a Herculean and a daunting task for her, so that was better taken care off by her a trusted associate. This at least ensured that the caviar and the white truffles were always in stock for her lavish Page Three extravaganzas. She may have lost the much needed track of her life but she knew what she wanted. A higher and a much wanted cause were awaiting her in the upcoming time.

The second character that I shall be referring to as Mr. A was a passionate writer, a dreamer and a person who could just shuffle between the world of reality and his own thought bubble. The only thing that bothered him from completely living in reality was the harsh behaviour of the publication houses that refused to give any credit for his works. His work was good. He knew that and he believed in that but the other people thought otherwise. Most of the people he knew including his family had ostracized him. He had regained his sanity only because of a few close friends and an occasional smoke of marijuana. His life seemed empty but he continued writing for he knew that somebody will appreciate his work sometime. A higher and a much wanted cause were awaiting him in the upcoming time.

Jack Daniels was the stable’s most favorite and cared for horse. Although wasn’t a complete adult as yet, but still was a beautiful and a strong brown stud. Everybody liked him but everybody also knew that Jack Daniels did not like to be sympathized with. Sympathy because of a freak but a tragic fire accident that hit the stables a few years ago which made him lose a limb. The rest of the horses were safely taken away but unfortunately that night Jack Daniels was on medication that had sent him in deep sleep which resulted in a difficult task of rescuing him. He was rescued but his hind-limb was caught between two burnt and fallen poles and thus had to be sacrificed later due to gangrene. A crippled horse is of no value to a stable owner for whom his horses are his money, but Jack Daniels wasn’t put to sleep or thrown out because the owner didn’t have the heart to do so. As his limb was amputated so was his dream of ever running for his master for the derby race was sacrificed too. Jack Daniels knew that his master loved him but he felt like a burden to the stable. A limping horse can be of no use to anybody. He thought that nobody would appreciate his purpose of existence. But still he continued to live albeit filled with loads of sorrow. A higher and a much wanted cause were awaiting him in the upcoming time.

So what is it that brought these three distinct souls together?

Didn’t get to know because I woke up, but one thing is for sure, soon I’ll be getting back on this one to complete the union of these three characters!

I Am Back!

It’s a busy life. Everybody knows it and everybody is living it. People have the knowledge that they have to take time out from this chaos and reward themselves with time for themselves. I have understood this dogma really well and finally am dedicating myself to something that I have loved from the beginning-writing. A lot of things have passed through the complex by lanes of my mind from the last time I wrote something credible. So here I am back to the promise that will be respected and never broken at least till the time a writer’s block hits me again.

Deadlines are coming up. Work needs to be done and not just done it has to be done in haste. This is what I have learnt in the past few months. Not that I didn’t know of this before but when you realize this in the harsh way you tend to digest it quicker and not burp about it. From the safe cocoon of your thoughts and convictions the outside world seems to be quite inviting and rosy, but it is only when you actually step out and interact with the big rats that you smell the stench and feel the heat of the “big, bad world”. As though if this wasn’t bad enough, the worse is the trail of mental distress and emotional turmoil that follows and believe me you happen to leave some of this everywhere. From your talks, your sleep, and your body language and even to your dreams (which I should term as nightmares now) the serpent of stress stings you every time. It is time to fight back now. No more letting the stress and work deadlines affect my writing, a new promise is made and regular updates of the blog are on the way. Look out world, I am back.

A Simple Life

Let the title not mislead your thoughts because I don’t have the mental capabilities to waste words on Paris Hilton! The simple life what I am talking about is the magic that life creates by its sheer simplicity. This can be exemplified by the presence of nature and the inhabitants of Mother Nature. Man, unfortunately, has opted out of this clan and has decided to lock horns with her instead and has been successful on giving birth to complete annihilation. The destruction is evident not only through the “progress” that we have been able to achieve but the worm of catastrophe has found itself into the hearts of the human race as well. And this is what is going to be the raison d’etre for the ultimate downfall of all of us. As the war of supremacy continues throughout centuries it will be just a matter of time before the doomsday clock will strike midnight. Cupidity has raised its ugly head and enslaved the entire race. To lead in the rat race of nincompoops has suddenly become the motive of every single soul. But as we are running ahead to keep up the pace, on the way we are missing out on the simpler things that we are being offered.

The instinct of love is slowly vanishing. People are becoming selfish. So is love.

Unconditional love may be a clichéd term, but nobody seems to understand it or even if they do nobody has the courage and the perseverance to act upon it. Animals and children are the only one that I feel know, understand and sincerely nurture this emotion. The rest of the examples that I know of have been portrayed only on the celluloid. David, from A.I., is the most glorified example. It is only about animal and children that I can speak of because it is only they who project innocence. And in children it is only till the time they are in infancy stages that the innocence shines which after a period is taken over by conceit and avarice. What is the factor that separates humans from animals? Some say a developed brain or coming to think of it could be an underdeveloped heart. Try looking into the eyes of a dog, any dog, and then you will come to know how it is to look at innocence. I think intelligence and greed go hand in hand. Love doesn’t need the requisite of being smart. It may be blind, deaf, dumb or even non-existent but it is by far the most divine, pure and simple emotion. As a friend of mine once told that it is the most frequently used emotion by all but without understanding it. Love is the only factor need to live a simple life. Love unconditionally everyone around you. Tough, but possible. Expectations kill. So no conditions or contracts have to be read before emoting love. Wonderful yet simple. So wishing you all a simple life.

HAPPY ENDING

Happy Ending

Do you believe in “happy endings”? This was the question put forth by a character in a movie to her friend. Her friend just looked around, saw his pregnant wife, smiled and answered affirmative. How sweet! But here I agree with Don that sweet mush is diabetic. That should truly put me in the class of people who always have envied the happy endings in the movies. Envied, disagreed or purely bored. These are only movie fantasies which do sell like hot pancakes among the masses. But running equally well are tragic epics like Romeo and Juliet, Titanic, etc that completely insult the need for happy endings.

Happy endings signify optimism, dreams, trust, confidence, utopia, angels, innocence and fantasy. Reality as we all know is not exactly a concoction with the above mentioned as the prime ingredients. So reality never has happy endings??? Nobody can say so. Everybody has their own opinions on this. Optimism and skepticism go hand in hand to maintain the poise and lead to the path of development, flying towards the stars or digging the ground for worms, what say Mr.Bachchan? I earnestly pray that India does have her share of a happy ending sometime in the future. If endings were made to be satisfying and happy that would surely put a certain someone called “Bad” out of the picture. No bad, only happy. Only joy, no sorrow. Boring!

Ask a friend of mine who recently broke off with his girlfriend, and you will get an answer as to why suddenly he has no place for happiness right now. But relationships, I presume, are meant to be like that; fun, laughter and great when they last but once it’s called off life comes back to where she was-in the bitchy tales of the unloved. It becomes very difficult to get people like my friend in these situations back to the sane world. The continuity of the dream world and reality has been shattered and they have to cope with the ugly face of the reality.

Happy endings don’t come along just like that, they have to earned, worked for and only then relished. Nothing comes easy here. But there everything is just a wink away. You may call it anything you might want to- happy place, utopia, escapists’ haven etc but it is the place which everybody wants to get it off their minds and into concrete. These places irrespective of who the people are or what their thoughts are, their hearts have come up with these imaginary fragments which surely are beautiful. It is just a matter of time and trust amongst all of us the dreamers have to come together to let our dreams flow from the labyrinths of our minds into the world around us so as to have what else, but ‘Happy Endings’.

As John Lennon said:-Imagine…..you may say I am a dreamer…..someday you’ll join us…….. Signing off on a very positive ‘note’. :)

Time to create history again!!

Dear Mr. Chief Minister/ Mr. Prime Minister/ Mr. President/Any Answerable Authority,
Being a concerned citizen of this beloved nation called India, there are a number of questions that are running in my mind which have to be answered. Not knowing whom should I ask, I had no choice but address this letter to you. The very first query that pops in my mind is-WHY SHOULD I BE PATRIOTIC TOWARDS THIS COUNTRY? You might be able to deliver some “culturally rich” answers to this, but that doesn’t assuage me in any way. What I am looking for is some pragmatic solutions to all my doubts. Patriotism and love for one’s country or motherland comes only if the homeland is doing something good for the social welfare of all her citizens, but here I see nothing of that sort happening. What do we get in return for the taxes that we pay- farmers’ suicides, crater full of roads, a state consulate in the capital worth Rs.50 crores (which we didn’t even ask for it), unemployment, corruption, political scandals, lawlessness etc?
The situation is such that even if we as citizens try to get involved in these matters, we too shall get torn in between the vicious circle of all the banes that the country is facing today. “Ask not what the country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country” quoted the famous American president J.F.Kennedy. I agree to this statement completely but this statement comes from the leader of a nation who is taking care of all the needs of their citizens. Needs which include education, medical facilities, energy supply, food and life security; thus the citizens too feel to give it back to their nation in many ways. Unlike the situation here where the government run schools and hospital are in such a pitiable condition that people like me and you would not even think of associating ourselves to them. The education here has become a luxury which is enjoyed by the super rich or the reserved category. Where do the middle class go? They are just running helter-skelter to save themselves from the troubles of getting themselves ground in this system. The medical facilities too speak the same language, language of inadequacy. On one hand you want to make rural internship compulsory to serve the villages but who takes care of the medical facilities of the interns themselves in the far flung villages? The way of lifestyle between the urban and rural India is too different to make rural internship compulsory for urban doctors.
The government wants to ape the developed cities from all over the world but at least start off with basic amenities. Energy. Why does the city that dreams to be the best investment and financial capital have to face power cuts in form of load shedding? Why does the nation’s capital have to go without power for hours together? Why does the majority of the rural India think that power-supply is a luxury?
Why don’t the policy makers who have been elected by the citizens and for the citizens behave in the same way? Why is that nobody is paying heed to the very basics here in our nation? The security of life of the average man here too is not taken care of; the minute the religious sentiments of a certain segment are insulted they go on a public property destruction spree with the law enforcers being mute spectators. Why?
The property that is being destroyed belongs to the nation, their nation, so are they too not patriotic towards their motherland? In this entire mess of systems, red-tape, controversies, destruction, inadequate infrastructure, improper medical and educational facilities, population boom it is the common middle class man that suffers the most. And how does he take care of his problems- the old just sit back and wait for their days to end, the youth pick up loans and move out of the country to greener pastures. And it is after all this that the government blames the trend of “brain drain” that is causing the country’s downfall.
Sir, a sincere request to you, please help us help you and our motherland. We the common man are as helpless as the situation in our homeland. Don’t make us leave this country that we have called home for so long. Aren’t the reasons mentioned here enough to justify the thinning of the patriotic feelings towards my country? We have a beautiful country, we have beautiful people then why is it that the society we live is turning ugly? I say it is time again to substantially redeem our pledge, our tryst with destiny, to find utterance and rekindle the soul of our nation for freedom. It is time for service and dedication to India and her people. Sir it is time to make history again!

Some People, WEIRD!!

Recently came across a mail in my inbox categorizing people distinctly under three headings. The headings were “Reason”, “Season” and “Lifetime” each conveying the meaning on its own-people that you either meet for a reason or for a season or for a lifetime. But I did find this classification incomplete for the simple criteria that people that you come across in your life are more complex than stated before. This list doesn’t have place to fit in the people you despise or for that matter people you haven’t met but still admire them! This e-mail got me thinking on the type of people that I have come across in my span of 23 years and some months. People as mentioned and as obvious can come in all forms of family, friends, relatives, acquaintances, teachers and a host of other relations which is one’s personal perspective.
Of all the afore mentioned list of people in my life I think it is the friends category that takes up the maximum amount of your time and energies (given the fact that I am still single!). But yet this really nice and innocent looking category can too have its fair share of troubles…and no I am not talking of the fights or altercations between friends, but the way these people are always treading upon the thin line between acquaintanceship and friendship. That’s the toughest test of all—who should I call my friend and who becomes my acquaintance? It can get really confusing and frustrating to trust somebody. And also what levels of trusting makes some person your friend. The person who you think is trustworthy enough of your friendship and camaraderie may be talking obscene things behind your back and you might never even come to know of this! Disgusting!
Instances that everybody must have come across must be the time when a certain somebody who used to be your very good friend has recently turned into just another casual “someone I know”. So does that mean jumping the line is really that easy? Life is as composite as the mingled pathways of the thoughts that go into birth of these relationships. A very popular saying says that “If you lie with the dogs you rise with the fleas”. But how are you supposed to differentiate between the two? Experience seems to be the only right solution to this query .The downfall to this answer could be bad etches in your mind but at least one would have learnt one’s lesson. And my experience teaches me that the best way to keep these people at bay is to put them under a different category. A category which I choose to call- WEIRD.
P.s: Thoughts expressed here are quite confusing and ‘weird’ but that is how my state of mind was while putting this down.

Miracles Do Take Place!

A Simple Miracle
A lesson that I have learnt recently is that turning twenty-three does not necessarily make one wise enough to take on the world or understand the protocol of the society. The twenty-three year old that I am talking about here is myself. The last five years that have been spent toiling really hard to earn myself an “oh-so coveted” degree of being a dentist does not imply that I am a sane individual. The underlying cause of my “insanity” lies in the cloud of confusion which has stormed into all of the room meant for rational thinking. But these are thoughts and I don’t know of any person who can control the flow the innumerable thoughts entering their minds—a la “dimaag mein solid chemical locha”. This did teach me a few things about chemistry and the most important one was that the chemical turmoil caused in your mental labyrinth does not agree to let go of you. Being a very normal human being it then became quite essential for me to hunt down a sensible solution to the grave problem that I was facing….but did I mention what my problem was? The strenuous situation may be easy for many and difficult for the rest and the situation is – WHAT NEXT? The question is strictly pertaining to the life that I will be starting afresh with a graduate certificate under my belt, but then suddenly I realize that there is no freshness in the new life. What I foresee in my life is boredom and monotony associated with my future clinical life wholly and solely related with dentistry. It may be a field which is high on money but I am the kinds who would like to go in for some job satisfaction too. A thousand queries with absolutely no answers was driving me and my friends crazy (friends because they were the ones who had to take on the responsibility of listening to my repetitive balderdash). Struggling with lots of things including the big challenge to prepare for the post-graduate entrance examinations due in a short period, my mind was dying, I was dying.
Enough is enough I decided. Since nothing was getting to think me straight the only thing that deemed feasible then was some desperate divine intervention. So packed in a few stuff and hopped onto the bus for Shirdi. Thought even if God wouldn’t be able to help me out then at least some fresh Maharashtrian country-side would. Finally after eight hours of bus journey and a short walk led me to the doorstep of the temple in Shirdi. Bought a few floral and sweet goodies for Baba and with the tray I too stood in the really long and serpentine queue. Then just like an unsuspected lightening would struck someone, I too was struck but with a thought that said-“Wow, you are not the only one expecting a miracle in your life…there are millions looking out for God’s special blessing!” The thought was good enough to keep my mind away from the wait needed to get me Baba’s ‘darshan’. It was philosophical and a contemplative series of fireworks on display in my mind and simultaneously my heart too. Both were on a fantastic debate on life and it was great to listen to them both voicing out their opinions. Then just as how quick that lightening thought had struck me, something else struck my vision now later finding its course to my heart. The sight was of seven or eight year old boy suffering from mental and physical retardation trying to make his way, with help from his father, through the ocean of people around him. The kid had a very nonchalant but a lost and a dreamy look ignorant about the stream of people flowing by him and while his father was helping him walk and at the same time trying control his drooling. This sight completely anesthetized my mind, my heart and me I in whole. I couldn’t think, I was just out right numb. Later as I surged ahead in the queue, I saw a very beautiful face of a three/four year old girl smiling at me; I smiled back only later to realize that the girl was suffering from Down’s syndrome. I just moved ahead finally getting the ‘darshan’. But quite surprisingly, in spite of the troubled mind that I possessed I did not know what am I supposed to ask from Baba-a miracle? I was clueless. So I just bowed before Him and left the temple premises to later find myself on the bus home.
As I looked outside the window, to gaze at the passing rural life soaking in the evening sun, the picture of the three year old smiling at me and the seven year old boy and his father trying to make their way through the people kept flashing. I was completely overwhelmed. Tears began to roll down my cheeks. They weren’t tears of sympathy for the children but tears of sympathy for me. Me, because I had just realized that I had been extremely selfish. God had been kind to me from the very beginning, giving me a life that would surely be called luxurious but still I was unsatisfied, still asking for a miracle to take place in my life.
A miracle did take place in my life; the miraculous sight of the children who no matter what they were going through did keep up smiling and irrespective of their situation did managed to fight their adversities. I was changed. Change in the sense that no more cursing the life I was living and the thought that keeps me going is that just like me there are millions on the look out for a miracle to take place in their lives and then there are the ones who themselves are the miracles in life. Simple miracles. Special miracles. Thank you God.