Tuesday, August 18, 2009

The Fast Three Days

“Real generosity towards the future consists in giving all to what is present.” I was at page 14 of Robin Sharma’s ‘The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari’. Sujesh had recommended me this book when I was hunting for a novel. As I turned each page, the novel was getting interesting. Each full stop in the novel increased my curiosity to know Julian Mantle, the center character of the novel. But today, I was unable to concentrate on the award winning novel. All I was thinking about was the Fast Three Days.

The three days that had just passed.
The ones that came so slow and went so fast

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I was traveling back from Bangalore to Pune on 16th August; and having no companion, I thought its better to read this book. But the words in the novel couldn’t hold a strong grip on my mind. I closed the novel and asked Grace – my fellow passenger for a pen and paper to jot down this blog. Yes, I began composing this blog in Udyan Express that left Bangalore on Sunday, 16th August 2009 at 8.30pm.

It was in the month of June that Sujesh had told me that for the weekend of 14th to 16th August, he and Sumesh are planning for a trip to Bangalore. Bangalore always excites me because like every other IT professional, even I have many friends who work in the Silicon Valley of India. And what makes it more special is that I completed my Green Field Training (Accenture’s official post-campus training) in the same city. Along with Sujesh and Sumesh, I decided to join in with Abhilash and Pinky joining in from Chennai and Vanita from Mangalore.

As I already said, I have many friends at Bangalore – I can classify them broadly as College Friends and Accenture Friends – some of them are common on both the categories though. I was in a dilemma as to which group shall I spend time with. Though I have experienced life for past 22 years, being an emotional fool, I have still never learnt to prioritize my friends – all of them are equally important for me. With many plans and discussions, it was finally decided that we would spend time with Accenture Friends on Friday 14th August by visiting Bang-3, Bang-4 and Bang-6, and then begin with college friends for a nearby hill-station, Coorg, on Friday night and return to Bangalore by Sunday late afternoon and board our trains back to our work locations on Sunday evening.

From the month of June, the wait for the month of August was on. The calendar seemed to turn too slowly. The month of August arrived after a long-long wait and I began my shopping – right from jeans to shoes to innerwear!!! I was just too excited… Then came 13th August when the hands of clock seemed to move too slowly. Me, Sujesh and Sumesh were waiting at Kalyan station to board the Udyan Express that would carry us in it and drop us at Bangalore. Finally, it arrived; and our journey for the most waited three days of the year began.
As the train began, everyone started waving me a good bye. I didn’t want it. I wanted some more time to be spent with them. I want lifelong time to be spent with them. I felt like getting down from the train and letting the train go. But practically this was not possible. Foolishly emotional people also have to think logically sometimes.

As everyone waved me a good-bye, Umesh began walking with the train. He was wishing me happy Journey– but my mind didn’t agree to listen to him. This journey didn’t have any happiness for me. As train gained momentum, he had to slow down and finally stop waving me a good-bye like everyone else did. All my friends appeared farther and farther and smaller and smaller – and once, they were completely out of sight.

My cell phone rang, near Sumesh’s coach Sindhu Nair, Sujesh and Mervin were waiting to wave me a good bye. I waved them a good-bye as well. But in no time even they were out of sight.

I came inside the train and began looking for my seat. It was the same seat where I had placed my bag near the door. I sat and told this funny incident to my friends. But network problems while traveling didn’t allow me to talk to them for long.

Everything was over now. I had to reach back to where I was destined to be. The novel didn’t entertain my mind. The water didn’t quench my thirst and the food neither satisfied my taste buds nor my hunger. I kept all of them away from me and asked Grace – my fellow passenger for a pen and paper to begin writing my experiences about the days that I had been waiting for from months and how they passed like the flash of a camera.

I wish I had a time machine through which I could go back to these days and re-live them. I had begun composing this blog on Sunday evening and am finishing this today on Tuesday evening.

Every time I listen to FM, it reminds me of the songs we were singing on Friday evening. Every time I see a cloud, it reminds me of Thalacauvery when we were above the clouds. Every time I see water flowing, it reminds me of river rafting experience.

I wish, I really wish I had a time machine to go back to those Three Fast Days. If this is not possible, I wish my life shows me many such days again and again in my life.

I miss you all friends… I really miss you all… Not only the ones mentioned in these blogs – but each one of you…

I request you my friends, please take care of your emotionally foolish friend. He needs you! He might have learnt to stop crying before you, but he hasn’t yet learnt to stop crying before himself.

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