Some day…

The sky was clear, no clouds, no stars, just a bright moon and its tranquil reflection in the rivers calm waters. A mother was feeding her 1 year old, her face perturbed. She came here every night. There was something sacred about this form of nature. It calmed her, told her stories, made her think, and made her dream. It took her away from the everyday life. It took her away to a world inhabited only by her son and herself.

But it couldn’t remove her worries today.

Her son is too small to understand the thoughts reflecting in his mothers eyes but notices the difference. He looks at her with a confused expression, and the innocents concern makes her want to pour her heart out to him...

She tells him

“One day….

One day I will not begin my day with someone else’s death
One day I will live without the fear of losing a human to the insanity of another.
One day everyone’s life will have a value

One day people will think for a change
One day the young will not be used to spread terror
One day kids will grow without seeing terrorism

One day our people will wake up to all this
And that day our country will glow in all its beauty

Some day…”

What do you all say?

This incident happened today morning in our city Bangalore. A bus, a lady traveler, a misbehaving conductor and my friend who witnessed this. What should he have done in such a situation?

This is a small incident which we hear about every now and then. I myself have not witnessed such an incident in Bangalore and greatly respect the BMTC staff for doing just their duty and nothing more but there are bound to be some people who take liberty in the fact that a small indulgence on their part could be masqueraded as a slip of hand in a crowded bus. This isn’t new information. I am sure every person, male or female, who travels by bus, knows this.

What would I do if someone misbehaved with me using the crowd as a shield? Well, probably just give a dirty stare and stand in a place where people can not take advantage of the crowd. Is that it? I am ashamed to say it, but yes. Will that dirty stare do any good? Will it make any difference to the person doing it? He would probably give a smug smile and target someone else!

What do people do when in such situation? Most take the easy way, my way. And so did the lady who we were talking about. My friend, a mere witness to the whole scene thought that wasn’t enough. He raised his voice against the conductor condemning him for his act. I do not know what happened after that. All I know is he saw a wrong and raised his voice against it.

This was a small incident which in itself represents all the wrong happening in our country. I represent that section of the population who knows about this, sees it and does nothing but mind their own business. My friend on the other hand represents the hope against all of this, a voice which makes sure it is heard, someone I will look up to for what he did, and someone I would want to be.

He on the other hand is thinking whether what he did was right or wrong, if should he have lost his temper like the way he did. What do you people say?

(A correction - the bus was a private bus and the lady was waiting at the bus stop and not travelling when it happened. Sorry for getting the facts wrong but the question still stands!)

I’m lovin’ it :)

French fries which are deliciously crispy and salty on the outside, warm and soft on the inside. Burgers which have brown golden crisp chicken patties sandwiched between two warm buns sprinkled with sesame seeds on top, mayo which oozes out when u take a bite and lots of lettuce mixed up between all this. A large pepsi to complement all this solid food, lots of tomato ketchup on the side, the arousing aroma and a nice conversation.

That is my usual at McDonalds. Something I look forward to every now and then, ever since my dad got me my first burger back in 7^th. Reminds me of a lot of things. Reminds me of my sister, quietly nudging me with her elbow on spotting the McDonalds sign. How I would try and tell her that we just had one last week and should probably wait for a while to eat junk again. How she would then seem to agree but later tell dad (just as we are about to pass by it) about how much her sister craved for McDonalds. Reminds me of the car which used to be filled with McDonalds heavenly aroma shortly after, the ride back home with paper bags containing 2 spicy chicken burgers and 1 large fries and the contended look on both our faces.

Even back at home we always had a routine. The paper bag would be temporarily, but always put on the dining table while my sister and I fished out two big glasses to put the pepsi in and sometimes 2 cubes of ice if the weather demanded. Mom and dad meanwhile would get their dinner ready. How we would all then stretch out our legs on the sofa with burgers on our laps and glasses safely on the side table on top of a coaster. We even had our own particular ways of eating it. I had to make sure to get rid of the excess mayo and all the lettuce protruding out by carefully removing it and eating it first and only when I had made sure that nothing is going to drop down from the sides do I proceed with my first bite.

There was always some music in the background, lots of laughter in the foreground and a yummy meal in between. Always.

These are usually the things which I get when I buy a meal at McDonalds. Not anymore. Last week at Forum’s McDonalds, I found one more to add to that list.

Me and my friend were traveling back home when we suddenly decided to take a detour to McDonalds. The idea seemed excellent, both of us were starved and I could smell the burgers already. But the moment we entered Forum, the idea started to fluctuate between good and terrible. Good cos of all the things associated with McDonalds and TERRIBLE cos of the long queue. Gosh! There were easily 30 people standing in front of me!

Somehow in between me making a long face and complaining about the time it would take to finally have the burger in my hand, I heard a lady’s voice asking me what I would like to order. But I was still at the end of the queue! Order already? Anyway, I gave my usual order and Shana gave hers and we were promptly handed a slip of paper indicating our orders. There were 3 counters, 3 people tending to those counters, 2-3 more to assemble the orders on the trays, a waiter directing us towards the next counter which would be vacant, another who took our order and numerous people inside working in a sort of frenzy. Within minutes I was at the bill counter where the employee just took that sheet of paper containing our order, confirmed it and billed it with ease. No confusion, no waste of time, no complaints. I was asked to wait for some time while Shana was asked to wait outside the queue to reduce the congestion in the line. A minute later I had the order and Shana had found a seat. I was impressed! Fast food was actually FAST food. 15-20 minutes later we were out, contended, satisfied and full.

Few things I forgot to mention. I did not have to get up and go for more ketchup or tissue or straw to the crowded, busy part of the restaurant. I simply had to call one of the people who work there for it and out it came from the pockets of his apron. I had never noticed that before and so that was, to me, another demonstration of efficiency.

Also, in spite of all the rush and the busy atmosphere of the place, while I was waiting in the queue, a waiter actually took time out to say “Hey baby! How are you?”

I’m lovin’ it :)

p.s - The quoted sentence was directed at a 3 yr old girl standing in front of me.

Words are all I have to take your heart away..

It's only words
And words are all I have
To take your heart away

The above three lines by Boyzone define me. You could ask if words are all that is there to me. You could ask if words are the only assets I have. Yes I am only words and words are all I have and I am very proud to say that.

Allow me to explain. One could say that words are a just a form of expression (for your safety don’t even dare say ‘words are just a form’ in front of me! ). You could argue that it is these expressions, actions which should be given more importance but my ego tells that it should be the exact opposite! To me expressions are a representation of words, speech is representation of words, the thoughts in peoples mind are a combination of words and their actions are representation of these very thoughts. For eg. a smile or a frown always has a reason behind it. These reasons almost always boil down to thoughts and if thoughts are a combination of words then aren’t words the base for everything, the foundation for our lives? To me words are all powerful and anyone who wants to disagree better stay away! Ego rules here!

Exactly how powerful are these words? As far as I can remember I have made people laugh by using just words, I have made people cry by using just words, confession of love is done using words, expression of sorrow is done using words, words of confidence have led people to achieve heights, words of wisdom have guided people for centuries, words which may seem like wisdom have even misguided people into committing grave mistakes! Our world revolves around words!

I know people who carry on with their lives depending on a few words to give them strength. I know people who have changed lives of others using their words. I feel complete when I have been able to convey something using my words. The pleasure in making someone laugh or transporting someone to a different world is something which even I cannot describe right now! If my words have made a difference to someone’s life, if my words have helped anyone at any point of time in any way then it makes me feel like my purpose in life is accomplished.

Words are everywhere around us but I feel it is best represented written. Written words are the purest form, the kind which is unadulterated by accessories such as expressions or actions which can alter the meaning of these words. If words were air then written words would be the air inside a balloon. If utilized properly it becomes a source of power, a source of joy, a reason for life.

But how many have the time for this basic form of words in today’s world?

How many people can take time out to listen to the ramblings of a book like me!

(Excerpt from 'If I could just speak' by a hurt,forgotten book)