Contrasting Worlds! (For better or for worse?)

Last morning in a deliberate (and desperate!) attempt to set ourselves free from the shackles of our hectic schedules, a few of us went out on an early Sunday morning drive to the not-so-well-frequented places of Calcutta.

Sincere advice --- Next time you're freewheeling around like me, just observe what's around you.

One of our stops was a road-side eatery in the city. (For Calcuttans, we were near the Calcutta Stock Exchange!). While we sat, waiting to greet steaming cups of tea and hot buttered toasts, under a gray clad morning sky, I looked around me. The waiters were rushing around with plates to be served, waiting on the incoming cars, greeting regular customers with smiles and 'How do you do?'s, the man at the stove cheerfully doling out order after order, other early risers sitting around in clumps sharing a laugh or two (rather loud ones at that!). It was a quiet, serene and fresh way to start a Sunday! The delicateness and intricacies of the surroundings made you forget all the worries and just wanted to make you sit there all day long, staring at happy faces. 

And then i happened to glance behind me. Just a meter away from where we were sitting, stood clusters of police patrol vans. Reason being that the local police headquarters and the State Government;s office was nearby. There were proper police sand bunkers laid out, with somber- faced, rifle-clad policemen in them. Noticing my gaze, my Dad simply pointed out, "They always have to be on the alert, lest an attack take place."

Enough to shatter my illusion of the peace and quiet.

Contrasting worlds, ain't it?!

P.S: To all the men on duty, I salute you for the dedication and devotion you display. At all times. We, civilians, tend to get away from work with small excuses like sickness, birthdays, anniversaries. But for you, life seems work and work seems life. Sans complaints! Immense respect for you!

The change I want to be.

It is that time of the year again! Time to make resolutions!
Another year has begun.

This year I am not keeping any resolutions. Not because I don't complete them (which most often I don't!), but because I promise to make every day a new day, because I promise to live in the present, because I will treat one day at a time, because I will be the change I want to see in others.

On the morning of the first day of the year, on the way to office all I could crib about was the fact that I had to work today also. When I finally emerged out of my self-obsession, I noticed a poor lady sitting in the same bus, with her three children. On the cold wintry morning, they barely had enough clothes to cover themselves. Their feet were bare. They looked fatigued. Yet they were smiling and talking to one another. I looked around me. There were others who would have to work much more than me. Not just today, everyday. The bus drivers, conductors, police personnel, domestic helps, the shopkeepers, their staff. And a lot of other people. I realized I am not the only person who works. There are several others in situations worse than me. I have several choices when it comes to my life. Several of them don't.

I felt, if nothing else, blessed.

And I decided that I will no longer complain. And this isn't a resolution. I don't want to forget this halfway into January 2013.

This is the change I want to be.

Happy New Year!