Nostalgia 6 - DAM 287

Date: 28 July 2005

Time: 2.35 p.m.

Location: Classroom, Victory Group Tuitions

Pankaj Sir was teaching us Geometry. We students were not very happy with that day's class. The whole of Mumbai has been shutdown following intermittent rains for the past few days. However, our classes didn't wish to give us another holiday. So, most of the students had a very unpleasant look on their face. They just wanted to spend the next 2 hours somehow and return home. I was looking at the rain through the window adjacent to my seat. I thought to myself, 'What is it about rain that makes it so beautiful?' I then slipped into thoughts but at the same time kept looking at Pankaj Sir nodding my head at regular intervals. That was enough to make him think that I was listening.

I was thinking about the last few days. My flashback began from the morning of 26th July 2005. The time was 6 a.m., I was on my bed and it was raining very heavily outside. I had to get ready for my school but I just didn't want to leave my bed. The sound of the raindrops too was prompting me to just lie down. However, I dragged myself out of bed and got ready within 45 minutes. By then the rain had stopped. I stepped out of my building. The atmosphere looked enchanting. It was still a little dark. The streets looked empty except for a newspaper boy on a bicycle and a few stray dogs here and there. I was enjoying the walk and hence slowed down the pace of my normally quick walk. When I reached my destination, I saw that the main gate was still closed and many students were standing outside. I went in through the smaller gate and found some of my classmates reading something on the notice board. It was exactly what I wished to see - a holiday notice. Now the return walk was even more pleasant. Don't know why but everything around me seemed to be so happy. I returned home and decided to spend the day watching T.V. or with my friends. I didn't venture out of home as it was raining heavily again.

Later that day, I was browsing through T.V. channels when I stopped at the channel - Headlines Today. It was reporting about the heavy rainfall wreaking havoc in Mumbai and its suburbs. The rain showed no signs of stopping. I was then sure that I would be witnessing floods for the first time in my life. Our tuitions also declared a holiday for two days. I heard that our Kalyan railway station was fully flooded and went there with my friends Bhushan and Nadeem. Many people had gathered there to witness their beloved railway station in that condition. The railway tracks had turned into brown rivers. The three of us walked through the flood waters alongwith the hundreds of other people gathered there. We returned home and had some hot tea from my mother. We friends gathered at our terrace in the evening but couldn't have a game due to rain. We were worried about our fathers as they were not in a situation to return back home that day. The railway tracks were clogged and the train services were suspended. So they had to spend the night at their offices.

They could return only next day (27th July) afternoon when the water receded a bit. The rain had stopped at some places but the sky had not yet cleared completely. Our schools had declared a holiday for atleast the next ten days. It was like a small vacation for us. We then had to face scarcity of water as the muncipality had stopped water supply temporarily fearing epidemics. We helped eachother collecting rainwater in buckets and water from borewell. Those two days (26, 27 July) were spent in such activities. No studies, no homework, etc. We were very happy.

However, next day i.e. 28th July 2005, we were dissapointed to hear that our Victory Group tuitions was not closed that day. We were even more dissapointed when we heard that most other tutorials had given their students a holiday that day too. This was the reason for the not so pleasant look on the face of the students that day. I was still daydreaming when I saw a piece of chalk from Pankaj Sir's hands flying towards our bench. Initially, I thought it was for me but it wasn't. It was aimed at Himanshu who was sleeping beside me. The only reason I was spared the chalk was that my eyes were open. The chalk was bang on target and brought Himanshu out of a deep sleep. There were light laughters and giggles among the students. That chalk throw from Pankaj Sir was enough to wake up the whole class. The class continued.

Pankaj Sir was still going on with his theorems when we saw two people running downstairs outside our classroom. Those two people came back again and asked Pankaj Sir to come out for a moment. We saw them whispering something into Pankaj Sir's ears. We couldn't hear what they said but Pankaj Sir looked shocked after that. He came running into our classroom and asked us to pack our bags quickly. He didn't say anything else. He just asked us to go home at once. Soon, Nair Sir came and asked us to leave for our homes quickly. Now it was official but we were still puzzled about the reason for this sudden holiday. We packed our bags and came out of the classes. We could still hear Nair Sir saying "Go straight to your homes. Don't wait anywhere." Most of the girls left straightaway. Anyway 'boys will be boys.' Most of the boys stayed their wondering what happened while some got themselves busy eating vadapavs and other snacks from the shop below our tuitions. Soon, Nair Sir came running with a stick to drive us away. Seeing him, we all left quickly.

When I reached some distance I saw a large group of people running towards me. Shops were being shut down. I now realised that something was really wrong. I thought some civil war or something has broken out. I also joined those running people. It was more or less like a mini marathon race. While running I asked a person beside me, "What's happening?" He had absolutely no idea, he said, "Kya maloom" (I don't know). We then exchanged smiles. When I was near my building I saw the parents of a girl of our tuitions. They waved at me and I went near them. They asked me, "Did you see our daughter?" I replied, "Yes, she will be coming soon I think. The class has been dispersed but I have no idea why." Her father : Don't you know. The Badlapur dam has burst. Our city maybe flooded any moment.

I : Oh! So thats the reason.

By then their daughter arrived.

I : There comes your daughter. I think I must continue with my running. Bye!

I was preparing for my sprint, when I heard a loud shout from behind, "Woh dekh, paani aa raha hai" (Look, water is coming). I didn't turnaround and just kept running. After getting to a distance, I turned around to be relieved that it was just a rumour. However, I now knew that the dam had burst and realised that it was enough to cause damage to our area. I reached my building. I saw that everyone were rushing upwards to the terrace. People from the adjacent slums were also being shifted to the terrace of the tall buildings in our locality. When I found no one at my home, I guessed they too might have gone to the terrace. I went downstairs to see if my friends residing there are aware about all these. I saw that all the rooms were locked except one. It was as expected Joel's house. He was peeping out of his door and wondering what was wrong with all these people rushing upstairs. He saw me and asked what happened. I told him that the dam had burst and we must rush to a higher place to save ourselves. He was shocked and came with me at once.

When we reached the terrace we could see almost the whole population of the city from there. The streets and slums were completely deserted. The whole city was on the top. Most of them had their cameras ready to capture this rare event. Everyone was looking towards the east, the direction in which the dam is located. Seconds became minutes. Everyone stood in anticipation of an impending disaster.

Between all these we engaged in a small game of cricket. More than an hour passed and still no water. The wait continued. People were calculating the distance of the dam from our city and the approximate time it may take for the water to reach there. None of those calculations could justify the delay. 

Then we saw a small jeep crawling through the street announcing 'Dam kahi phutlela nahi' (the dam has not burst). It was announced that the whole dam burst thing was fake. It was just a rumour which got the whole city on their heels. People were confused how to react to this announcement. They were not sure whether to be happy that it was just a rumour or dejected for being cheated like this. We children did feel a bit dissapointed and cursed the person who might have spread the rumour.The whole experience was fun for most of us who didn't lose anything in that. However, the victims of such rumours are mostly the poor people who reside in slums. They have to run leaving everything behind to save themselves. Robbers and thieves take advantage of this panicky nature of man.

Nostalgia 5 - Bunk De Basanti

21st October 2006, Saturday

Time: Around 1.30 p.m.

Location: Joel's house

We (Me, Vishnu, Joel, Deepak, Nikhil, Ashutosh) were playing cricket. Deepak and Nikhil left after sometime as they had to go to their tuitions. However, they cameback after sometime as they were given a holiday that day. Me and Vishnu had our tuitions at 2.30 p.m. while Joel's was at 2 p.m. Joel had already decided to bunk the class that day. I also decided to bunk but Vishnu was not ready.

Vishnu: No re! I have already bunked 2 days this week. I don't want to take a risk again. I may be caught this time.

I didn't force him.

Me: Okay! then do me a favour. You take my identity card and keep it with yours in the attendance box.

Vishnu (surprised) : What for?

Me: The clerk Miss takes the attendance looking at id cards in the box, right?

Vishnu: So?

Me: That means those whose id cards are in the box are present in the class.

Vishnu: Are you sure this will work?

Me: I'm not the first person trying this. Harish, Premkumar, Neeraj, Swaroop, etc. have all tried this and they have a 100 % success rate.

Vishnu: Hmmm..! Thats encouraging.

Me: You just have to make sure you take back my card as well alongwith yours after the class.

Vishnu: Okay! I hope everything comes out good. Give me the card.

So, I gave him my identity card. After some time, he left for the class while we continued with our match.

Later in the evening, I came back to Joel's house. There was no electicity (one hour power cut). So, a candle was lit in his room. We decided to go to the terrace where most of us used to gather during power cuts or loadsheddings. There were two artificial parrots made of plastic hanging from the ceilings of Joel's house. Their speciality was that they used to chirp when we clap our hands loudly. They were placed in a small cage which was also of plastic. Don't know why but Joel felt like doing something different or artistic before going to the terrace. He kept a lighted candle each in both these cages. He thought it was beautiful and hence I didn't ask why. We then went to the terrace. Most of our friends were on the terrace. We spent around 1 hour in gossips, songs, games, etc. I was a bit anxious about Monday. I had bunked the class that day and the next day was a Sunday. So, I will have to wait one more day to know if am safe or not. At 8.30, the electricity was restored and we returned to our homes. Before leaving, we had planned to meet next day early morning for a morning walk.

I entered my home doubtfully. I wondered if there was any phone call from my tuitions asking why I was absent. However, I realised nothing like that had happened, from my mother's and brother's behaviour. I was then watching T.V. Suddenly the phone rang. Again I feared if it was from the tuitions. To my relief, it was just my mother's friend. Then my father returned from office. As soon as he entered the house, he asked, "Did you go to Joel's house?"

I was shocked. For a moment I had my heart in my mouth as I thought that I was caught.

Me: Yes!

Father: When?

Me: Evening.

Father: Not now?

Me: No.

Father: Then go there at once. There is a fire in his house.

I was actually relieved to hear that I was not yet caught. However, I managed not to show a relieved look and put on a shocked look. I rushed to Joel's house downstairs. I could see smoke coming out of his room. My friends too arrived on the scene. Many elders too arrived. When I looked into his house what I saw was that his sofa set was on fire and he was pouring water on it with a small mug. The elders rushed in and managed to put off the fire with some buckets of water. Everyone started asking him how all this happened. I didn't have to ask him. I could guess by looking at the ceilings of the room. The string which connected the parrot cage to the ceiling had melted due to the candle flame. It fell on the sofa below with the candle still burning, setting the sofa ablaze. Don't know why but I felt that this fire was the sign of an impending disaster for me.

Next morning, I got up early as planned for the morning walk. Joel too got ready. However, no one else had arrived, all of them had slept off. So, we both went for the walk. Joel decided to call Sreenath whose house was on the way. He was my classmate at our tuitions. When we called him, he didn't accompany us but gave me an important but depressing message. He said that I may be trouble on Monday as the clerk had cracked the trick of the bunkers. She called out the names of the suspects yesterday which included my name as well. He added that what put me in the suspect list was that my id card remained in the box even after the class was dispersed. I realised that Vishnu had forgotten to take my id card. This was more than enough for me to be worried. I spent the whole Sunday in that mood.

Next day, Monday arrived. I tried to encourage myself that all is well. Soon, Vishnu arrived at my home. The look on his face resembled the look Alan Donald had on his face in the semifinal of the 1999 World Cup, when Lance Klusner was runout due to his mistake costing South Africa a win and the final. I was annoyed but didn't talk much. I needed to keep my cool and think how to deal with the situation waiting for me at the classes. I decided not to give up and face the situation.

I arrived at the tuitions. Everyone looked at me strangely. My friend and school classmate Sreejith bombarded me with questions.

Sreejith: Why didn't you come on Saturday idiot?

Me: Just a break re. I needed it.

Sreejith: Now lets hope you won't receive a Heart Break Kick from Nair Sir. He is here today. According to rumours he is aware of last week's bunking incidents. Not sure if he knows about yours.

Me: That is what is worrying me too.

Suddenly, the clerk entered and asked, "Yeh Jithin kaun hai?" (Who is this Jithin?)

I stood up and said "I am he".

With a cruel look on her face she said, "Tu aa idhar". (You come here.)

She then went to the office and I followed her.

Clerk: Were you present here on saturday?

Me: No (I thought it was a safer answer)

Clerk: Then how come your id card was here?

Me: I was present on friday but had forgotten to take my card back that day. So my id card stayed here on Saturday too when I was absent. (the presence of mind we get in situations like this)

Clerk: You are trying to be too smart. Okay, why were you absent on saturday then?

Me: I was sick.

Clerk: Shall I inform this to Nair Sir?

As this conversation was going on, I could see Nair Sir staring at us occasionally from his office. By that time, I really was feeling sick. I decided to give up and go for a mercy plea.

Me: Miss, am sorry. Whatever I said were lies. I had bunked the class on saturday. This is the first time I am doing this. Please don't tell this to Nair Sir. Help me. I will never repeat it.

Clerk: Why did you lie then?

Me: I had less options. But I regret it now.

I could see it in her face that she was about to change her mind but - fate is fate. Nair Sir looked at us again and this time asked, "What's going on there?"

The clerk gave me a sorry look and disclosed everything to him.

He called me and enquired about it. I confessed everything as it is and asked for any punishment. The only thing I begged was not to inform this to my parents. However, that was exactly what he did. He called my parents and asked them to come and meet him. He then asked me to go to my class.

I came and sat on my bench near Sreejith. From the look on my face, everyone understood that I was in trouble. Many things went through my mind at that time. I even thought of running away from there. Again my cornered mind rose up - Let's face it.

After sometime, my parents arrived. I saw them enter Nair Sir's office. I knew I will be called any moment. At that moment, I lost all the courage I had gathered.

The clerk came and called me.

I stood up and walked towards the office like a prisoner going to be hanged.

At the office,

Father: What am I hearing about you?

I didn't reply anything. I decided to maintain silence till the end. I felt sad not because I was caught. It was because I did it only once and still all these are happening to me. Nair Sir didn't beat me but his words were more painful in front of my parents. My conscience was hurt and I thought of opening my mouth. Nair Sir said that he would be surprised if I got even 70 % marks in the SSC exams.

Me (something within me made me speak) : I will bring 80 %.

Nair Sir: Did you hear that? He just said he will bring 80 % marks. Okay, lets see. I take this as a challenge. I will shave off the left side of my moustache if you do so.

Me: I will.

I didn't speak anything more. We returned to our home. On the way, my parents scolded me a bit but I didn't mind it. I kept silent.

Since then it was studies and only studies for me for the next few months. The story of our challenge had spread among a few of our friends. It was now a matter of pride for me. So, I left no leaf unturned. I locked myself in our bedroom immersed in studies. My parents mind had changed and they were back to their caring best. They really supported me during those days taking long leaves from their office.

Finally, the exam period arrived. I felt I wrote it really well. The results were out on 26th June 2007. I got 84.76 % marks. My parents were very happy. I bought a box of pedha (sweets) and went first of all to our tuitions with my mother. As soon as Nair Sir saw me, he asked, "80 mila kya? (did u get 80). I nodded and showed him the marksheet. Looking at the marklist, he exclaimed, "Oh! 85 %?" He didn't speak for a while. He did look shocked as I expected. He continued, "Well, you proved me wrong. I take back whatever I had said that day. Very Good. To be frank I didn't expect this". I only smiled and offered him the sweet box. He took a small piece from it. I didn't remind him of the moustache shaving promise he had made. Maybe he didn't want to be reminded at all.

However, I do give credit for my success in SSC to him. Without him, I may have settled for around 75 %.

Nostalgia 4 - Pets

20 October 2006 Friday around 2 p.m.

Location: Joel's house

We (Myself, Deepak, Joel and Vishnu) were sitting on a sofa which was the only furniture without any damage in his room. Each of us had a plate in our hands and within those plates were Joel's failed attempt of a Sharkara Payasam (a fluid sweet made of jaggery). The payasam had gradually turned out to be Kapalandi mittai (chikki in Hindi). Whatever the result, Joel had tried his best. So, as a vote of thanks, we decided to help him finish the dish, thus avoiding him the trouble of eating it alone. We were talking about cricket as we ate. Soon the topic changed to our pet cat whom we lost last week.

I went into a flashback - We (Deepak and me) had found the cat abandoned near Durga Mata Mandir. We brought it to the terrace of our building first as these animals were denied entry into our homes by our parents. It was dusk and soon it would be dark.

Deepak : We have to find a safe home for her.

Me : Can't leave her on the terrace. How about our buildings compound?

Deepak : We haven't yet tried that place with a cat but sounds good.

Me : Lets give it a try atleast for tonight. If it doesn't work we will find a new place tommorow.

Deepak : We don't have other options. Lets go there.

So, we built a small home with some bricks and cloth for the cat. It was a place where no one other than we few friends visited. Moreover, the cat seemed to be very happy there catching the small rats in there, who am sure might have cursed us for bringing this Dracula into their heaven. We left it there with a plate of milk and returned to our respective homes. Next day, early morning, before going to school, both of us peeped into the compound. To our shock, the cat was missing. We were getting late for school and hence couldn't search for her properly. The first thing we did after returning from school was to look for her. We searched the compound completely but in vain. We then proceeded to the neighbouring dumping ground. We searched there for a while and atlast found her. However, it was not in a condition we would have wished. She was dead. She may have ventured out of her home in the night and may have been attacked by some animal.

The sound of one of my friends' teeth crushing onto the food brought me back from the flashback.

Joel : A friend of mine has got a cat and he is ready to give it. But....

Vishnu : But what?

Joel : He will take some money in return.

Deepak : How much?

Joel : Don't know. Maybe we should meet him.

Me : But even if we buy the cat where will we hide her. Our parents won't allow her into our homes.

Deepak : That won't be a problem. We have Joel's house. His parents won't be returning from Saudi Arabia for the next few months right, Joel?

Joel : Yes but are you sure it won't cause any damage to my house.

Vishnu : What damage can a small cat cause to your house?

Me (looking at the broken glasses of the showcase, broken table, damaged piano, etc.) : Atleast not as much as you yourself are doing.

Joel : Let's see the cat first.

Deepak : Lets see. Can we go there now?

Joel : Ofcourse.

So, the four of us set out for something which could give us a new pet. On the way, I was thinking about all our previous pets whom we lost within a short period.

First, a few stray dogs in our neighbouring areas who went missing after some days.

Then a puppy we found on 29th February 2004. How I remember the date? Well, it was my father's birthday and some of his friends had come home with gifts. I received three dairy milk chocolate bars from them. I took one of them, gave one to Deepak and the last one to the puppy who fed on it greedily swallowing probably the golden paper covering as well. It was enough for him to be friendly to us. This puppy was like the cat kept in the compound of our building. Unfortunately, it went missing the next day.

Then a very small sparrow Deepak brought one day from his school. It died at my home the next day.

Then 3 new born puppies in our neighbouring chawl. The owner of the chawl was a brute who used to harm these poor creatures sometimes. So, we rescued them and kept them in our compound where they lived for a few days with their mother. However, the woman of that chawl found them and to our astonishment climbed into our compound and took them away. After that we didn't dare to bring them back. Those dogs, gradually succumbed to some disease.

Then a small pigeon offered by Deepak's tuition teacher. Strangely, we had received the bird on 23rd January (Subhash Chandra Bose's birthday) and it flew away on 26th January (Republic Day).

Then a small bat, we found in the letter box of our building. We built a small house like structure for him with the cardboard box of the new shoes I had just purchased. There were some pedhas (sweets) at my home during that time. We fed him those pedhas and he seemed to enjoying it. He too flew away one day.

I was thinking about some more when we reached our destination - Joel's friend's house. Joel went in and called him while we waited outside. His friend came out and engaged in some conversation with him most probably about his cat. His friend then went in and returned with a cat in his hands. Joel called us and we went near. We saw it was white and healthy one with a long tail. But wait! Whats wrong with her eyes. We saw that she had only one eye. It looked really horrible. Usually, we have a smile on our face when we see a cat but today it was something else. We looked at eachother with a 'do we need this' look on our face. Joel told his friend that we will come again later as we hadn't brought any money with us. His friend agreed gladly. We returned home never to go there again leave alone buying the cat.

There is something to think about here - A missing organ made an otherwise cute face look horrible.

Thus, for the first time we rejected a pet.

Nostalgia 3 - I too had a rank story!

Until my 4th standard I was a very ordinary student. I used to get on an average 75% mostly, at times crossing the 80% mark. During those times, we used to form groups or teams in the class. The members of these groups used to sit together or close to each other. I also had a team consisting Sanjay Kumar and Shahid Khan other than me. Later on, Prashant Shukla also joined this group. Prashant was new to our Model English High School at that time. I realised that he was better than me studies which did make me feel a bit jealous. Oneday, the students were rearranged and I ended up on the same bench with Prashant which meant we had to sit together for the whole year. Initially, I didn't like his company but gradually we became good friends. We started studying together and this helped our friendship to flourish further. The final exam of the 4th standard concluded. I got 74% marks as average which I was not happy with. I was now more serious about studies, thanks to Prashant's company.
Our vacations ended and we were now to enter our 5th standard. I was very excited about it as we were now entering the Secondary section and also we will now onwards be using full pants instead of the half pants we used until 4th standard. The only sad thing was that we now had to get up early in the morning. Prashant and I decided to sit on the first bench this time so that we will get more attention from teachers which as a result may boost our studies. However, our class teacher (Vijayalakshmi teacher) brought in the rotation policy according to which we had to change our bench every week. However, we did study seriously and completed our first exams confidently. After a week of the exams, the D-day (results) arrived. I was happy with the 78% I received as it was better than what I got last year. Prashant was magnificent with his 86% and it was a sure bet that he would be the first rank holder in the class. As there was no official ranking system, we students ourselves had to find out the top 3 rankers. It was confirmed that Prashant was first when the marks of the students were compared. Now the hunt for the second rank holder had begun. During those days, Ruchir Kemnaik, Diran Shetty, Manoj Jadhav, Dipti Patil, etc. used to be the regular rank holders in our class. So, I thought they maybe the other rank holders. Suddenly, Prashant came to me and said, "Congrats Jithin." (Jithin was my name at that time).
Me: "What for?"
Prashant: "You are second."
Me: "What? Kuch bhi."
Prashant; "Arrey, seriously."
Me: "What about Ruchir, Manoj and Diran then?"
Prashant: "Ruchir and Purvi are joint third, they are 1 mark behind you while Diran and Manoj are not even in the top 5."
Me: "Are you sure about this?"
Prashant: "Damn sure bro. Its official, you are a rank holder Jithin."
It was like heaven, a dream come true. Before that I never even imagined that I will ever be even in the top 10. It was a great encouragement as well. I started working harder after that and it did pay off as I got first rank in the next exam with 86% marks leaving Prashant and Ruchir behind. During those days, rank holders were respected like superstars. Now, a new superstar had arrived. I compared my rise to the rise of Hrithik Roshan in Bollywood. He had just arrived into movies at that time but was already my role model. It was during this time that I got contact glasses which gave me a scholar look. In the next exam, most of us crossed the 90% mark although I finished 2nd behind Prashant and followed by Ruchir. The final exams also concluded and when the average marks came out, I was second again which meant I would receive my first big prize from my school. I received the prize for 2nd rank at the annual day celebrations of the school that year. It was a Little Oxford English dictionary which I still have with me.
However, in the 6th standard I became overconfident and a bit arrogant too. Also, my friends group had changed. I started declining in my studies gradually and soon everyone including me forgot that I was once a rank holder.

Nostalgia 2 - My First Charity

When I was a child, my understanding of God was completely different from what it is now. The large number of deities and goddesses in Hinduism did confuse me a lot. I used to think that if I worship one deity, the other deities may feel jealous or sad. So, whenever I visit a temple, I made sure I prayed to all the deities in the locality. Frankly speaking, I wasn't much interested to visit temples except during exams or for any other wishes. The other instances when I used to visit temples were when my parents force me to accompany them to the temple or when my mother compels me to visit them. I would be given some 2 rupees or 1 rupee coins to be put in the donation box (daan peti - am not sure what its exactly called). As a proof that I had visited the temple I should not have those coins with me when I return home. Ofcourse, I could have spent them on vada pavs or anything else but I had a good chance of getting caught if I did so. So, I  usually avoided that risk.

One such day, out of compulsion I visted the nearby Durga Mata Mandir alone. I think the Navaratri festival was going on at that time, so there was a decent rush at the temple. I didn't want to join the rush and stayed outside the temple and offeres my prayers at the three small temples within the main temple compound, dedicated to Lord Dattatreya, Lord Hanuman and one more about whom I still have no idea. I had two 2 rupees coins and one rupee coin with me that day. I could have placed them at those small temples and that was what my decision was until my eyes caught a sight. I saw a group of beggars sitting besides the temple gate. I used to see them daily but always ignored them as I never had anything to give them. Whenever, I used to see someone giving such beggars alms or food, I used to think that someday even I would feed someone or provide them money. Till that day, I never got an oppurtunity to do so or that was what I thought. However, that day as I stood before them with 5 rupees in my hand, I thought my turn has arrived. Now, the problem was that there were many of them in that group and I was confused who deserverd the money and how much. Most of them were old and handicapped but they seemed to be unhappy with eachother arguing for space. the angry expressions on their face made me lose some of the pity I had for them.

I moved my face a bit and I saw a small boy who I was sure was younger than me by atleast 2 years i.e. he would have been around 6-7 years old. His clothes hinted me that he too was one of them although I had never seen him before unlike the others in the group. Maybe he had just joined them. I guessed he wouldn't be getting anything as he would mostly be bullied by the elders in the group. So, naturally I felt more pity for him and decided to give the money to him. However, I can't give it to him in front of them. Somehow, I managed to get those coins to him. His expressions were heartening, He accepted the money eagerly and showered blessings on me in whichever words he was comfortable in. I felt like an angel, really. I just patted his shoulders and walked back like a proud donor. I had just made my first charity. I was about to cross the temple gate when I heard a scream. I turned back and saw two boys who looked older than me holding the collar of that small boy. I guessed they were trying to get the money from him. I was shocked to hear the quality of words coming out of the boy's mouth in defence. I couldn't believe he was the same boy who just praised me with the purest words I have heard in my life. I felt more sad when I learnt from their conversation that they were his brothers. I really wished to save him. However, the fact that those two boys were elder and stronger than me made me walk. I felt sorry for the boy but I had no other option. I walked back. Thus, celebration of my first charity was shortlived.

Nostalgia 1 - The Pen Cricket Game

I have been going into flashbacks too often lately. Many childhood incidents which seemed to be very serious at that time are now remembered with a tinge of smile. Nostalgia....... a word as beautiful as it's meaning. There have been many moments in my life which i love rewinding again and again. Most of them have been situations where i have failed in one way or other. i can say with confidence that all of them have taught me some lessons. These lessons are the ones which have crafted me into what I am now. Every experience, failure or success teaches us something, only we have to keep the windows of our mind open. We will observe mostly that we learn more from failures more than from success. As I told you already, there have been a lot of such experiences in my life. So, I will just randomly pick some experiences and share it with you all (ofcourse, for my own pleasure, obviously).

Lets go 10-11 years back when I was jaust around 10/11 years old. During those days I was an ardent cricket and WWE fan. However, what i loved more was playing the cricket and WWE trump card games. Other than the usual trade game, I had a unique way of using those cricket cards. I used to place them according to standard cricket fielding positions on my bed which was my cricket field. the cap of a pen used to be my stumps while the pen itself was my bat. For the balls I had paper rounds. My left hand was the bowler while the right hand was the batsman. One of the main rule is that after the ball is hit if it falls on any of those cards and stays within it the batsman will be declared caught out. Also, if the ball hits the thumb, its a LBW. Other common rules being bowled, fours, sixes, etc. also apply. The last pages of almost all my notebooks at that time were full of scoreboards of those matches. Crazy, right? but let me tell you that all these matches were played very seriously indeed.

There were some of my friends who shared this interest. My mother used to get puzzled watching me so engrossed in this strange thing. At first, she may have thought that I was doing some research on a new kind of horoscope or tarot card reading. However, she wasn't much amused when she found me playing this stupid game during my exams. My father also found it too childish. Even my brother who was too small then seemed to be more grown up than me while I used to play that stuff. No doubt, its an idiotic thing but I enjoyed it. It was a great stress buster or something which cooled me off. It also managed to console me whenever I felt down. Plus, there is no expenditure on this game. My imagination could create my own world and I could control the players I admire according to my wish. Also, I credit my ability to calculate quickly to this game, where my mind is always on numbers, counting the runs and overs.

However, with the advent of video games and computer games, it lost its popularity in my mind giving space to EA cricket and other games. Then came the era in my life where like all boys of that age, playing games on computer was the most interesting thing in life. However, powercuts or loadsheddings, whatever you call them, managed to keep that unique pen cricket game alive in me. It was the inverter, which killed it completely in me. With the arrival of inverters, I had to spend the powercut period too in studies, which was initailly treated as spare time. Moreover, with time I was getting more serious about my studies and spending time with friends and family. Computers, television and even radio occupied my spare time. gradually, I almost forgot about that pen cricket game.

Years passed, I was then doing  F.Y.J.C. (not literally - I was a serial bunker) at CHM college, Ulhasnagar. It was actually a depressing period in my life. I had stopped meeting people except a chosen few and it had been months since I had smilled from my heart. One day, we (me & my family) visited a relative's house. I had accompanied them against my own wish to avoid emotional blackmail from those relatives. My parents were busy talking to the elders of the house. I prefered to visit the garden nearby where I saw some youngsters playing some serious cricket. I kept observing them and calculating their scores without their or my own knowledge. Suddenly, my eyes caught a sight which attracted me there. I saw some small boys playing some kind of a game nearby with some small stones placed here and there within a small circle. I thought it was the 'Gotti' game. However, when I went near to them, I found myself smiling. What I saw was this - one boy was holding a minute bat made of rubber between his fingers and another one was bowling to him a very small ball. They also had a stump set - very small - equal to the bat. Those little stones were the fielders. I suddenly remembered my old pen cricket game. I couldn't stop smiling. Suddenly, I saw the ball hitting the stump and I exclaimed 'Out'. The boys looked at me surprised. They smiled and I smiled back too. I asked them, "Can I join you?". One of them replied, "Yeah, But after this match, till then you can be an umpire for this game." I agreed gladly. It was the first time in many months that I had smiled or rather laughed openly.