When everything about life seems to fall apart and every plan seems to go wrong, stay put and hold your head, high and clear, and look for that silver lining which flickers just beyond that fading horizon. You shall find it inevitably, and, unfailingly hope shall become reality. Whenever everything in life seems to go wrong and the whole universe seems to be conspiring against me, I calm myself with above words.
When you, yourself seems to be falling in a bottomless pit, when the last breath seems to have gone out and the last of the muscle seems to have given way to the pains, hold on for few more minutes, and then few more minutes, and then for few more minutes, there you shall reach the finishing line as a winner, there you shall win the ball from your opponent. On the occasions when I participated in a long race and was faltering near the end ,or was in a football game, dribling across the enemy line, I used to motivate my waning stamina and tired spirit with above words.
By Lord's blessing, my life has been sailing smoothly and gently for sometime and I have long given up running races and being a aggresive soccer player. Tell you, in my younger days I was a passionate soccer player and for me, fair play was not a better part of my valour in the game. I used to rough up and be roughed up tackeld and be tackled, life was a passionate love affair and everything seemed fair and enjoyed the melee to the hilt. Youth was so intoxicating and I drank it with both hands. Football was best way I could unleash my untamed youthfull energy. By God, my life was football, football and football.
Times have elapsed and age has mellowed my wild spirit. Along the life, without realising when I changed the lane, I find myself walking in a safer and more gentle side of life's path. I find myself looking at better and pleasenter sides of my life and picking up bright things and overlooking darker things . I find myself, humming a song of happiness and fulfillment as I stroll along the life of passion.
But was my life destined to be a never ending saga of pleasentries and smooth sailing? It seemed so till I ...... !!! How so ???
Well, I had a well laid out plan for my life and family when I boarded a Deccan Airline for my home from New Delhi on 14.06.2008. I was heading home to bring my family from Ziro, Arunachal Pradesh to New Delhi. Life seemed bright and promising and future looked like a long and straight highway, smooth and green. I could almost feel myself cruising along the highway of my life gently and pleasently. After all, I had laid out my plans perfect to the last end. I had come back from Afghanistan in the end of November'07 and joined my new place of posting at New Delhi. By April end, I had managed to get accomodation at one of the poshest and best location in Delhi. I also had managed to furnish it by May end. By the first week of June, I had confirmed from my head office that I will not be moved from New Delhi in near future. There are two very well reputed schools within the sight of my house. I spoke to the school authorities about the admission and they assured me of admission for my children. Everything was tied up and here I was on my way to bring my family members. We were going to stay together after almost three years of separation. Icing on the cake for my onward journey was the fact that I was going to meet one of my childhood friends at Guwahaty and from there we would be travelling together to our hometown.
Ominous signals of my misfortune started casting its shadow after I landed at Guwahaty. I went to call on two of my seniors at Guwahaty. To my ill luck, both of them were not present when I visited their homes. There was a miscommunication between my friend and myself, had a few hot words by mobile, did not meet each other and boarded separate buses for Itanagar even without seeing each other till fate brought us together next morning near a huge land slide. This was one of those regular occasions when very close friends have a angry tiff off with a assured knowledge that before dust settles down from the present row, things would have been forgotten and kidding each other will start.As we were moving out of city, we found serpentine line of vehicles stuck in some goddamned traffic jamm. After waiting for two hours, at around 11 pm, we took a detour and headed for Itanagar via alternate route. On reaching Karsingsha, which is around 20km short of Itanagar, bus stopped as there was huge landslide. There I found my friend stuck too. First of my long walk to home started. We walked around 5 km and got picked up from Nirjuli in a Maruti car. Oblivious to us, Itanagar was cut off from rest of India due to torrential rain fall for last one day. Neither did coming days looked promising. Rain and land slide had claimed 18 lives the previous day. Our spirits were further dampened when the news of massive land slides on the Ziro- Itanagar road was broken to us. The news was that, Ziro, my home town, where my family stays would remain cut off for more than two months. We remained stuck up at Itanagar for four days and on 19th June we decided to trekk down to our beloved hometown. As per my original plan, we were to leave Ziro on 19th June for Itanagar. Instead, I was walking through the broken paths to reach my family. We walked for around 36kms i.e from Midpu to Potin through the rain and mud. A Tata Sumo was sent from Ziro to pick us up. To our great relief we found it waiting for us as we clibmed over last of the short cuts with60 degree inclination.. By the time I reached Potin, my knee hurt me so much that, I was unable to bend it and lift my legs. With great difficulty, I hobbled up the vehicle. On reaching Ziro, I tried to get down at market place, but my legs couldnot support me and I almost fell flat on my botts. Driver and a friend lifted me up and put me in vehicle again. My spirit was high and I was my cherubic self, but my knees were not listening to me. I was unable to stand on my own. On reaching home, I was literally carried upstairs.
For five days I didnot go anywhere and remained confined to bedroom and drawing room. And during these five days, I kept contemplating on the matters concerning people of Ziro and their helplessnes on the face of such natural calamities. Costs of essential items had skyrocketted, there was fuel scarcity and auto rickshaws and public transports had stopped plying, unable to feed, many schools had vacated their hostels and sent their students home. Many more couldnot afford fuel for their school buses and closed down their schools. Sick couldnot go for treatment at other places, students missed their tryst with admission dates and men and women looking for job missed out on their interview dates. Such was the chaos thrown up on everyday life of ziroians.
My best laid plans also had gone kaput.I came back to Itanagar on25th aongwith my family through a very trying and treacherous road.
On reaching New Delhi on 30th June'08, I came to know that I had been posted to some other office. This was the ultimate sour part of my well laid plan. I was looking at the prospect of hunting for new house and school for my children at yet unknown location. One single factor which prompted me to bring my family to New Delhi was the fact that I had a comfortable accomodation a in a very good location with all the amenities within a short reach.The very thing was snatched from under my feet while I was sharing the dream with my family. It was a great shock. Yup. Initially bumbfounded. Wasnt expecting such a turn of events.
However, I wasnt giving up my good life, and my good life was in my mind and not in the material surrounding. I got my children admitted in school and they are a bunch(two boys and a girl) of a happy going school children as of now. I am looking forward to new posting and take the life by its horn. One may change my material surrounding, but till I have my spirit to live burning, nothing can prevent me from living and enjoying life. Every single day, every single minute is a moment of celebration for being a conscious part of this beautiful universe.
