Are You in the ICU??

Have I made the wrong choice? 

Maybe I shouldn’t have tried this in the first place.

What was I thinking?

Oh God, what have I done??

The above lines don’t represent an epiphany; rather they are the expression of doubt by a friend of mine on her choice of clothes she had just bought from the mall. This was a few years back. 

Why have I brought this topic up now? 

Good Question. Read on and you’ll find out.

Knowing her, she must have spent hours shopping “diligently”, tried everything twice, almost taught a crash course to other customers on “how to bargain”, and asserted herself as the regular customer of the shop even though she had been there for the first time. Now let me switch to another friend of mine. He did a thorough research on the best colleges in Delhi for under-grad course in Commerce, prepared an entire checklist, pros & cons analysis, eventually made a choice, and now 10 months and 12 days later, is questioning his choice of college. He is getting good grades, hasn’t got a “back” yet, is a member of a few societies, and to top it all, has a girlfriend! Still, somehow he manages to be cynical of his choice every other day. 

What do you make of the above two accounts? Maybe you think how silly they are being or maybe, you can somehow relate to them in some sense. If you fall in the latter category, I can understand your point, because I have been in those places, and being there, I can also say that, my friend, you’re in the ICU, if you question your choices vehemently, after making them. I found a line in a movie I watched sometime back to be really true, it was “We are nothing but the sum total of our experiences.” You replace the last word with choices, and it still makes great sense. We humans have a tendency to ponder a lot before making crucial decisions, and question our choice after making that decision. Yes, you should think, that’s why God gave you brain (or so he must have thought), but when you over-think, you do nothing other than straining that little thing in your head. 

I wasn’t really having too high expectations from my impending college life, and the cut-offs made sure I wasn’t going to be a part of the so called “On-Campus” colleges under Delhi University. I got admission in some other “Off-Campus” college instead, did think about migrating two semesters later but then stopped thinking and began enjoying the life away from the campus. And now when I look back, I’m happy with the years that I spent there and don’t have any regrets. Now in an MBA college, I see some of my fellows thinking on the same lines, and that’s why I know what’s going in their mind, and that’s why I think their mind is in the ICU. 

Yes, everyone wants the best for themselves, but remember, only a small fraction get the best, the rest make the best of themselves from what they have. I have a small question for you all. Did you enjoy your school years? Hoping that you say yes, now ask yourself another question. Did you make a decision regarding the choice of school? No, but you came out enriched, having made many friends, and the memories bring back a smile on your face. So when a decision you had no say in turned out so good for you, think about how good a decision which is based on your choice can do for you. And it applies to everything. Be it as trivial as choice of clothes to be bought from a mall or as important as deciding upon a MBA college. So what if some choices don't turn out the way we expected? Learn and move on. That's life. While running, you don’t keep turning back to see how far you’ve come, because you know you have to look ahead for that. Life is like that only. If we keep looking back after every choice we make, our mind may well need some INTENSIVE CARE. Hopefully, we won’t let that happen.

Until next time...
Take Care :)

The Tryst With The Hill...

Ever since I entered IXth grade, I’ve been hearing one same line again and again,
“Bas, yeh 2 saal ache se padh lo, fir life set hai.” But those 2 years are yet to finish. So, on 2^nd of June this year, I stepped into the next phase of these “2 years”. This time it’s for the tag that somehow increases your rate in the matrimonial market- an MBA degree. But thankfully, all the bournvita  I’ve had over the years has had a good impact on my brain and I know why am I here and what I want to achieve from the next two years (rest assured, sprucing up of my marriage profile would be the last reason for being here). But insights into my choice of college and field of profession some other time, today I’ll share with you’ll my 3 weeks so far on the hill. 

Before you begin wondering about the word “hill”, let me throw some light on my whereabouts. 

My home has shifted from New Delhi to Pune, Symbiosis International University has succeeded the University of Delhi, the under-grad years at S.G.G.S.C.C have paved the way for post-grad years at S.I.M.C, Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication and lastly, from a happy late sleeper-late bloomer, I have now become an exponent of the “not so early to bed, but still early to rise” theory. The exact place I’m perched on at the moment is a hill in Lavale, and as the cab driver told me, it’s pronounced LOVE-Ley. A campus on the hill somewhat aptly takes care of that feeling of being away from home, and to add to that, a picturesque view, good people and surprisingly good mess food (at times) have made my stay so far one like the KFC tag line.... “So Good”. 

In Pune, the first person with whom I had a reasonable interaction was the auto driver who drove me through the city and up the hill. Coming to a new place, I had all kinds of plausible scenarios in my mind...

1.     He would grossly overcharge me and take me through a long route.
2.     He would take me to some remote place with the intention of kidnapping me.
3.     He would take me to the wrong place all together.

But thankfully, some negotiation took care of the first point, the GPS on my mobile took charge of the 2^nd one and his confidence took care of the third point. While I mentioned it to him that though we had agreed upon a fare, he was over-charging me seeing that I was from a different city, he kept insisting that “aise cheezein Delhi me hoti hongi” and that he was charging the reasonable amount only. It was almost an hour drive from the airport to the campus, so we had many other things to discuss. The weather, the rains, the people, his life, my life and my wife... yes, he did ask me if I was married or if I had a girlfriend. Kaafi jaldi frank ho gaye, nahi?? He mentioned about how he came to Lavale  to see the shooting of the movie Bodyguard and showed me his pictures with Salman Khan as well, followed by a small jig on the title track of the same movie. In between I was looking at all that was passing by, the roads, the people, the sign boards (most of which were in Marathi).

So I finally reached the campus in the afternoon, checked in the hostel, entered my room and dozed off, only to wake up in the evening. The days that followed included interactions with my fellow batch-mates, induction sessions, documents verification, daily classes, weekend trips to the city and last but definitely not the least, the realization that I had the typical Dilliwala accent, or so I was told. 

So, in ways more than one, the hill has been pretty welcoming. I’ll share more as I experience... 

Tune in next Sunday, for I hope to share the next post then.

Until next time we meet
Take Care :)