We went on talking for hours on various subjects, ranging from Politics to Indian Police academy to the naxalite movement and issues related to them to the marital life to many more such topics… The discussions were intense and some-times light hearted. We crossed from one station to the other. Many more co-passengers joined our discussions between Vijaynagaram to Bhubaneswar but our discussions kept on going. When we parted we shook hands and wished each other.
After I had alighted from the train, I realized that in the complete journey of 5 hours that we never got to know who we were, we did not even exchange our names… But believe me; the discussions actually helped me tied over my last 5 hours of my long journey home...
It is a question which we keep searching for. In pursuit to get an answer we seem to be reading a hell a lot of books, listen to a lot of people who are supposed to be guru’s in their own rights and what not…
In the same process of discovery, some of have stuck to me..
A journey of happiness and Sorrows – A path filled with thorns and some roses...
A journey of relationships – Some we happen to have, some we create
A battle to win some and lose some…
A management of relationships (Calls for serious trouble)
Some say it is a path of “Discovery” (GOD only knows what!!!)
A struggle for survival (They call battlefield.. ha ha ha)
Is the beginning of death (That is Scary!!!)
Well there are so many that one keeps hearing… well but for me it looks like a self discovery more than anything else….
The beauty is that in the tribulation of life… One goes on with a BIG Smile… Good or Bad... Who cares… Have fun...
The other day, while I was traveling from one office to other, I had to wait at a “Train Crossing” for close to half an hour. I had been going through some of the documents sitting in there, for a meeting that I was supposed to attend but was feeling bored. The cab driver had switched of the engine and we were just idling. The cab had stopped in front of a “college gate”. Bored and eager to move on, I had shut my laptop and was peeping out of the car window, when I saw this cow, holy cow. She was trying to find some green grass around to fill herself. It had just stepped in front of the gate of the college and seems to have found a small patch of greenery near the road, besides the pavement. As it started to chew, the college security guard came rushing to shoo her away and swung his wand onto the poor cow. The cow kept chewing and after having got a mouth full it moved on as if nothing had happened. But the guard ensured the push and yelling till the cow moved away from the gate. The funniest part was that, the cow had just moved a couple of inches, an old man passing by, stopped, stepped out of his “chappals”, touched the cow, mumbled a few prayers and then moved on.
I was wondering what a diversification of thoughts and beliefs. The beauty was the timing of the events.
But for the cow, it just moved on chewing its cud, oblivious of the happenings.
His smile said it all… It was so catchy that my eyes could not move away from that twinkle in his eye… He could not move himself, could not convey his thoughts, could not even utter a word but his smile said a million of words. He was one of those amazing kids, who were challenged from the day they were born. Palani, lying in his bed on the floor, shared with four other kids was just smiling. He only other thing that he could do was to lift his arms and say, “hug me”.
I stood still as if time has stopped for me, not knowing what to do, holding back my tears, as the supervisor of the “Little Hearts Specialty school” kept telling us what all happens in the day. These kids were in this world not knowing whether they would live another day. They do not even know when they are hungry, what they need to eat. Today they may seem so nice, in their best way possible, tomorrow with the new day, who knows what state they would be in.
Thoughts kept coming, how does he talk? Must be frustrating when not able to communicate what he wants. Does he know what dreams are? How does the world look outside? What are the different colours in this world? And so many more…
We always keep comparing how sad we are, how not so good we are to do in this world. How much short of money we are in… Our limbs are intact but we still complain of an easy mode of transport even for a shorter distance. I am sure a lot of us can argue saying otherwise. But, reality is, “How may of us are happy in the state of affairs we are in?!”
If Palani can still smile in his irreversible pain why can’t we love the live we are in??
