Good Morning!

There is something mesmerizing about dawn...the chirping of birds, the chilly fog lifting as the sun's first rays come penetrating through, the reddish orange morning sun smiling down upon you-these have been time and again described in prose and poetry alike. But what struck me today was the unusual calm of the hostel, the deserted campus road, save for the rare morning joggers, the crunchy leaves that lay on the road having breathed their last, the scritch-scratch of the broom of the early sweeper, the dog on the roadside barely opening its lazy eyes to watch me jog by, the aroma of the first cup of coffee from the roadside chai-walla, and as time ticked by, the campus sprung to life...Yes, there is indeed something about the dawn-refreshing,exhilarating,rejuvenating,calming; something inexplicable that cannot be read about, but only be experienced. And if you own a pair of shoes, it only gets better.

The morning jog brings a unique bag of surprises to each one's mind...to some it is refreshing views on past issues, to some it is favourite lines from a book long forgotten, to yet others it is the tingling excitement of the day ahead. The morning run is also surprisingly adaptive, it either clears your head of disturbing issues as you concentrate on your steps, or it helps you focus and concentrate better on some thought.

If you are one of those to whom early morning means 10:00 am, trust me, you are missing out on something wonderful that life has to offer you...Kick out of bed at 6, get those jogging shoes out and run your campus road...But let me warn you, be prepared for addiction :)

A Train to Pakistan

It's amazing how when you decide to do something with all your heart, there's nothing stopping you. After 3 semesters of book-starvation at Kgp, I finally decided to make time to read a good book, no matter how loaded I was. And that's how I came to read "A Train to Pakistan" this week with sheer dedication, ignoring my forthcoming mid-semesters. It was worth it.
I've heard Khushwant Singh to be a great critique, but this book is different. I'm guessing it's one of his first, since it was published in 1956! The book beautifully captures the India-Pakistan partion, not from a wide perspective but from an insignificant village on the border. It portrays how human emotions harden, how man changes in terrible times such as these. It makes you wonder about the value of human life, rather the absense of it. The riots between Sikhs and Muslims, trains filled with slaughtered humans crossing the border both ways, people fleeing their homes only to be murdered elsewhere have been described vividly by many a writers. But what makes Khushwant Singh unique is his book dwells not on the inhumanness of these acts, but the inevitable change for the worse that the human mind and heart go through in times when men are mindlessly wiped off the Earth.
Not forever does the bulbul sing
In balmy shades of bowers,
Not forever lasts the spring
Nor ever blosson flowers.
Not forever reigneth joy,
Sets the sun on days of bliss,
Friendships not forever last,
They know not life, who know not this.
-from A Train to Pakistan.

Thanks to my extremely generous neighbour who willingly lent me this book, and expected nothing in return, but a word of gratitude in this post :)

my im(i-m-)perfect life

I know no ones life is perfect,for this world is far from being utopian. But sometimes life tests us a bit too much,to see if we bend under the pressure or snap into two...

why is there a nagging voice within me, always asking me to do the "perfect" thing...why cant i sit back and let someone take over...? why do we have to face so many forks in our life...? Especially ones where the choice is hard to make, and even more particularly the ones where you are forced into a path where your heart doesnt want to go, but ur mind directs your legs to trod on...?

life is never perfect...then why am i trying to make it perfect...?

have I told you, im a true Saggitarian...

Identity crisis

How often have we proclaimed to ourselves in exasperation,"wish (s)he would understand me! " How often have we been victims of meaningless fights,born from a single root - misunderstandings ? How often have we regretted having fought with someone only cause we misunderstood her/him ?
sometimes i wonder if the reason why people misunderstand me if cause they'd like to understand me the way they want to...not withstanding who i really am...Or if people like to see only that in me which proves advantageous to them, and turn a blind eye to the rest in me...
True, you cant make everyone see who you really are, but is it naive to expect people who love you to know who you are? can you close your eyes and find atleast one among the many in your life,with whom you have never had a misunderstanding, someone who makes you feel like yourself, someone who feels like they are from within..?
But who is right about what i am? The people who see me from the outside? or I, who cannot see from within?
Is there someone who truly understands me...? I wonder...

crisis oh crisis :(

what is the worst thing that can happen on a wednesday afternoon?
your stomach is grumbling from hunger and the lunch in the mess is inedible. yup you heard me right, inedible...I-N-E-D-I-B-L-E
i proudly tell you that i can adjust to any type of food, but todays lunch exceeds all limits...how can someone eat mashed boiled potatoes,without salt and tossed about it mustard oil?? *yuck*
just another reason to crib about hostel life...i guess...
grrrrr....

left alone...

what do you do when the ones most close to you hurt u, n then leave u alone to bleed...do u go back to them askin them to heal u, for only they have the power to do so,risking the fact that they also have the power to tear apart your open wound...? or u do lie alone waiting for your inner self to help u out...even though u know that will take an eternity...
i dont have an eternity...i have a life...one life...

busy bee = me :((

when you dont have time to close your eyes, take a long deep breadth, and enjoy the feeling of being yourself, i believe you ve become old. well not exactly, i mean you ve become an adult ( but thats a synonym for old right :( ) so thats where ive been, busy growing old...while nature continues to watch, in all her glory...surprisingly im in a great mood today...the weather is just perfect, with a light cool breeze blowing...u can smell the moisture in the air...the clouds are just dark enough to hide the sun, but not dark enough to engulf the entire surroundings in eerie darkness...im sitting near the window, which looks out to pure greenery...branches with fresh green leaves arching over, which make you feel fresh too...why am i sounding so romantic today?!?! guess nature is an awesome healer...
*closes eyes, takes a deep breadth and...*
shit i gotta run, have an event now :( grrrrrr....