My dad is a very nice person. He really takes pleasure and effort to wish his friends and our relatives on special occasions like festivals. I remember him taking time to write personal messages and wishes in lots of greeting cards and post them. But at times even his good intentions ends up as a tragedy because of his innocence and ignorance. The following is one of them.
This happened exactly 5 years back and it was a Good Friday. With a good intention to wish his christian friends and colleagues my dad asked me to send them “Happy Good Friday” SMS and out of ignorance I did as he said. To add more fuel to the flame, one of his senior most officer was also in the list. What happened next was fuming calls from his friends who received the message. So after realizing the mistake, my dad apologized to them for sending a wrong wish.
So readers if you weren’t aware, Good Friday is a mourning day for our christian friends. It’s the day Jesus Christ was crucified on the cross. So it’s better if you don’t wish them on that day, Wait till Sunday and wish them a Happy Easter.
I had a set of loosely held keys that opens the boxes which hold delightful things. But few of them are special and exclusive ones, they are my Luck-Keys. Why do I call them Luck-Keys? cos they are luck(e)y ones, somehow I get them back soon whenever I lose or misplace them. They say “Luck marches with those who give their very best.” and it became true in my case. Yes, I started to lose my luck on those keys as I didn’t give my best and took the luck for granted. I was careless and overconfident that I am never going to lose them, even if I do, I would get them back soon. Once a carelessly and loosely held luck(e)y slipped out of my hands, then I searched for it all along, but couldn’t find and It’s gone forever. This is what made me conscious of my mistakes and I started holding them tight, even put them together in a key chain.
Do you think it’s just about bunch of metal keys, no It’s about people you know. And those Luck-Keys are the ones who love you and care for you. They might come back and be for you in spite of your stupid behaviors and angry words. But they would definitely slip out of your hands if you are taking them for granted and not paying attention to them. Do you know what’s inside those boxes, It’s your own JOY. So hold on to your Luck-Keys tight.
Note : What prompted me to write the above is a Key Chain gifted by my buddy to hold those loosely held bike keys which I kept on missing and misplacing.
Many might have trouble sleeping, but in my case I always get in to trouble cos of sleeping. Recently this sleeping had put me in a very humiliating moment, but if you ask me is this the 1st one, it’s not. How could my blog post be with out any nostalgia or a flash back. Before looking at what embarrassed me recently lets look back some from my past. Oh .. this going to be such a self damaging one.
School Flashbacks
Scene 1 – Parents teacher meeting @ my school, My maths teacher conversing with mom.
Teacher: Your son sleeps during my class, just after lunch. Mom: He doesn’t sleep much in home. Teacher: He sleeps in spite of me making him sit in front row, hereafter don’t give him something heavy for lunch, give him some thing light like Dosa or Idli. Mom: Ok mam, will do as you said.
Scene 2 – School Physics Lab, Physics mam teaching some important experiment for upcoming board exam for only 4 students in a round table and I am one of them.
Mam: Gokoulane … Gokoulane … wake up .. Me: Sorry mam, I … ( says with an apologizing sleepy voice ) Mam: Sleeping in class at times is K, but what gives you guts to sleep while I am explaining in front of you. This is not at all acceptable, go wash your sleepy face and be back soon, hope you don’t sleep while walking.
How can I forget this one, It was during my 5th standard, after school got over as usual I took bus to my home. Unusually I slept and missed the stop where I am supposed to get down. The bus conductor woke me up when the bus reached the terminus. I knew I came far from where I am supposed to get down, so I enquired the conductor whether the bus go back in same route and when, but he replied that this bus would go to shed and asked me to wait for the next one with same bus number to come. In the mean time my parents got panicked as I wasn’t home on time and my mom prayed to all gods she knew that she ill bring myself to their temple if they helped her son to reach home safely. Later I got the bus and reached home late safely, but for that mistake, I spent that summer holidays mostly visiting temples. My mom still reminds me that visit to few temples are pending. SIGH ..
College Flashbacks
College its a different story all together, not many lectures bother when you sleep in their class, they are more than happy if you could be silent. But one lecturer always made a point to humiliate me for sleeping, It’s not my fault that his class commences after the lunch hour. At one point i got frustrated of him humiliating me. So what I did was I learnt chapters in advance and started nagging him with questions during his class, He eventually stopped disturbing during my sleep 😀 😀 .
One more which come to my instantaneously when I think about sleeping during my college days is the below video shot by my close friend Praveen during a computer lab session while I was sincerely dozing off.
Office Flashbacks
I usually take a power nap for 10 – 15 mins at my office in the afternoon which nowadays got considerably reduced. Initially when I joined none in my office objected for taking nap, but when I wake up and check mails, to my surprise I would find mails with subject like “Have you ever seen how you are sleeping ????” , “Sleeping (GO)Koulane” circulating in office mailing list with my funny sleeping pics of mine attached to them. Above are nothing compared to mentioning about my sleeping in my official profile, Bit of embarrassment isn’t it.
Write up about me in my office website.
zzzzzz…..
Do you think this would wake me up?
I can sleep with my earphones on
Recently …
It’s a sunday afternoon, hot Chennai summer made it a sun day. After getting my work done at Loyola College, I rushed to Nungambakkam railway station and got into the train in last second. Train was unusually heavily crowded as some maintenance work was going on and train frequency got reduced to 1 train per hour. With no place even to stand I stood on the edge of compartment entrance till the next Kodambakkam station, I forced myself inside when few passengers got down. Thanks to a big family which got down at the next Mambalam station which emptied some seats in the compartment, some how I managed to sit on one, put on my earphones and dozed off while listening to my favorite tracks. It’s my usual instinct which woke me up just couple of stations from my destination, but was shocked and surprised when I got up, I was almost lying on the shoulders of a girl.
Me: I’m Really … sorry … ( With confused and apologizing tone) She: It’s K, you didn’t even notice while I sat next to you, You was sleeping sound. Me: Yeah, sorry again for the discomfort, I am already bit embarrassed and thanks you didn’t shout at me or do anything that would have embarrassed me more. (another humiliating incident from my past struck my mind) She: My friends ( pointing at her friends gang sitting opposite to us and they were laughing at panicked me ) insisted me to wake you up, but I thought not to disturb you. And its not discomfort able as getting crushed by some guys in the crowd ( she said frustrated ) … You were sleeping sound in spite of songs playing laud in your earphones. Me: Hmmm, I was tired and I am like that some times. I have to get down in next station, Bye. She: Bye (smiling back at me, her friend too waved their hand)
On way back home I was wondering how cool that girl was, who didn’t overreact like many whom I came across.
Why do you run? Asked many,
With no notion to respond,
I sighed and thought is there any?
Queried myself, Why do I RUN?
Is that I could rise before the SUN ,
Put on those lovely running shoes,
And run along the lonely country road,
So that the cool breeze pierce into my skin.
“Really?” echoed my conscience,
Seems those reasons doesn’t convince.
It smiled from a corner and calmly commanded,
“Try me with something better”.
OR
Is that I try to stay fit and light,
Burn myself (calories) like a phoenix,
And get wet of my own stinking sweat,
So that I munch more with no guilt.
OR
Is that all about marathons,
Get clicked smiling while hiding sore with in,
And cheered up at delightful finishing line,
So that I show off my medal of accomplishment.
OR
Is that it deeply de-stress my mind,
Help stay focused and determined,
And get me used to perishing pains,
So that I evolve stronger every other step.
“Slow down” hit my conscience,
“Aren’t you just rambling reasons”, It mocked.
After a pause it said “The fact is you just LOVE IT”. I RUN, THEREFORE I AM
Note : I initially intended to write it as a Q&A between me and my conscience, later end up with this.
Gokoulane Ravi 