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| Life in a Metro... |
Day
4, Thursday...
With
different experiences for the first three days of the week, from the
exhaustible journey to the encounters of love, I had it all. Till now, life had
never been so random before. Travelling in ‘Metro’ itself gives your life a
different dimension altogether where your short span of journey may consists of
lifelong learning. And if you are still left with your share, then we have our
own ‘Metro’ city, DELHI to enthrall us with its naive yet complicated charm
each time.
It was
‘4’ in the morning when the phone started ringing. Ignored initially but I
ended up switching the phone off as it kept on ringing. After a tiring and
exhausting journey, it is not easy to wake up from sleep which we hardly get
these days. But even after the phone was set off, the restlessness was still
there. Eyes weren’t open but the
curiosity didn't let the peace to prevail and apprehensive mind kept on
hovering on different possibilities. After exhausting almost all the apprehensions,
I finally woke up with frustration and anger. Set the phone on and all of a
sudden the anger and frustration turned into euphoria. It was my childhood
school friend who called up after a long time.
We
all breathe in such a fast paced life that we don’t get the time to meet
ourselves even, so friends, family, relatives and everyone connected to us
becomes secondary. We forget or perhaps refuse to remember our own identity,
the purpose of our survival and succumb to this life as the way it comes. Not
to blame ourselves, we don’t have a choice
but even if we would have, we prefer to overlook the options. And for
some who overlook and try to step off the hierarchy, meets with the ego which
restricts them to initiate, to initiate by their own.
“We all prefer to be
loved rather than rendering the same”
As I firmly believe that we all are
remembered not for the way we were but for the choices we made. So, I chose
to be the way I am now. I immediately called him back.
Post
completion of school, he moved to Bangalore and it was rare that we used to
meet and whenever we did, it used to be for a few hours. And owing to the
habits which this life let an individual develop, we also become habitual of
the same lately. When we could share our sorrows, our joys, our lives with each
other, we used to discuss the way our organization works, the position we
possess, the flexibility in the work environment and all the formal things.
It’s not that we did not wanted to talk, we did want to, but the sense of
togetherness was lost. We used to talk but only for the purpose of it. We had
forgotten ourselves, our individuality and became a follower of the league
which we never supposed to.
I
called him back. He picked up and asked if we could meet. He was supposed to
leave the same evening. I was really happy and the moment I was about to say a
‘yes’, I realized that it was a client meet that day and most importantly, I
was leading that project. I informed the
same to him but I really wanted to meet. Sometimes, life renders such moments
which give momentarily happiness making you realize the importance of things but when you get
attached and begin to perceive in that manner, all it seems as a bluff.
Getting a call from my friend to meet up
after a long time was supposed to be a cherishing moment but like always,
destiny again restricted my pathways. I was already upset after almost getting
disturbed with the ring of the phone call and then there was this plan which
got haywire. No one wishes such a disturbed morning. It was 5:00 by the time it
all happened. Neither I could sleep, nor could I get ready to go to office
then. Still laid on the bed with no peace in mind and then the restlessness
prevailed.
After
starting the day on a disgusted note, it seemed so dull. And to add to the woes
was the routine which desirably or undesirably became a part of my life.
Followed it as usual, had breakfast and departed for office. I resembled an
irritated duckling. When I tried to enter the bus, there were people who didn't let me enter. Frustrated with the things, I end up shouting on the crowd. I
furiously hired an auto-rickshaw to reach to the Metro station. The fare was
almost ten times the fare of bus. Another issue faced by Metro cities. The
Public Transport buses are either not on time or are jam packed where you can’t
even imagine entering. As a result, the Auto-Rickshaw drivers take full
advantage of the crisis cheating public to an extent where it end up falling
prey to all these malpractices.
“Life in a metro has
a virtue of colors of which mostly are the shades of black”
It
is rightly said, your surroundings reflect whatever you feel. The environment
seemed dull as I was feeling low. I boarded the ‘Metro’ train with all the
projections for client meeting in mind. Till this time, it was clear that I would
not be meeting my friend. But as always, no matter how hard you try, whatever
has to happen have to happen... Fate dominates the reality. ‘You never get more
than what is yours and not before the time is right.’
A couple entered on one of the station. They
seemed to be in a hurry. The husband requested a man to give the seat to his
wife as she was pregnant and expecting a child soon. But as there is god, there
is devil. The city comprises of people who are always ready to help, and there
also are the ones who never help, yet another flavor of the ‘Metro’ city. The
man didn't give her the seat. Moreover, he advised the husband to take her to
the first coach, which is reserved for ladies despite of knowing her condition.
Metro cities commonly witness people who are always up for ‘free’ advice but
when it comes to helping others, they prefer to handover the pleasure to
others.
And
while all this was happening, ‘Metro’ stopped with strong breaks amidst two
stations. Mobile network also lost the coverage. We were totally stuck and
amongst the most affected was the pregnant lady. She started getting labor
pains. She was weeping out loud. On one hand, it was ‘Metro’ which stopped and
it was the suffering lady on the other. ‘Metro’ was resounded by her screams.
At one point, everyone felt helpless. The worst part was to see her husband
seeking for help, crying out, asking everyone if something could be done...
This day was the worst day ever witnessed in
a ‘Metro’. But what happened afterwards turned the worst into best. Little did
we know in our lives that there still are people who care for the fellow
humans, for their lives. Believe it as the presence of God or regard it as any
supernatural energy but there was something which made all of us realize that
miracles do happen.
There
was a middle aged woman who came out to help her. She asked everyone to move to
a different coach except for a few other women who could help. Some of them
covered her with a cloth and that lady carried out the delivery. While all this
happened, I witnessed something which we hardly encounter these days. Almost
everyone in ‘Metro’ was praying for the safety of that lady and her newborn.
AND A FEW MINUTES
LATER...
The
‘Metro’ resounded with the cries of the infant. The lady spoke aloud, “We got a
baby boy”. That was a sigh of relief for all of us and especially for the
father. He burst into tears thanking all the people who helped. There was
calmness and peace which prevailed all across the ‘Metro’. Amidst all this, I
forgot my frustration completely and was rather involved with the emotions of
the people who I didn't even know. Same would be the case for many other as
well.
We all are humans and there is a human in all
of us. Preference is an option. We all ignore to choose the human living in us.
That day, we all chose humanity above all. The reward was to see a family
united, a father’s peaceful smile, a mother’s joy and an infant cries. Though
the reward doesn't seem to have a value, but this reward was simply priceless
and incomparable.
Metro
staff informed the doctors on the arriving station. The fault was corrected and
the services resumed again. Metro finally reached to a station after getting
stuck for almost an hour. And then an announcement was made, “The baby boy who
took birth in a ‘Metro’ is declared to be the Mascot for Delhi ‘Metro’. “Metro
rumbled with a big applaud. This experience, this journey became exhilarating
for all of us.
And finally the mobile network also began to
work. As soon as it got into range, the phone again started ringing. It was a
call from the office. Whenever you know you have been called by your boss, it
certainly is not a good feeling especially when you know that you are late to
office. I picked the call and began to
give an explanation to the boss. Whatever he said, was also once in a while
experience. Generosity is not his cup of tea, but he was generous that day.
Me:
- Hello Boss! Good Morning! I am really sorry. This Metro! I am really pissed
off now. Their services again collapsed today.
He:
- Yeah! I know. It’s getting worse with more and more people opting for it. I
also reached the office late today. Anyways, the meeting got canceled.
Me:
- What? How it got canceled? It was an important meeting for the clients.
He:
- Clients also got late and then postponed the meeting. At least, Metro is
helpful to some of us.
(We
both burst into laugh but the moment when you get to know that your boss is
also late is surely a peaceful feeling and I can vouch for it!)
Me:
- Alright Boss! That sounds really good. I was tensed (though I was not).
He:
- That’s OK! You may take an off today. Tomorrow is another important review.
Prepare for it.
Me:
- Oh! Thank you so much Boss!
He:
- OK then! See you at review tomorrow.
Me:
- Sure Boss! Thank you once again. Bye.
Whenever
you desperately need something, you usually don’t get it but the moment you
lose the hope of getting it, you get it. Life though ironical is nothing less
than a fictional thriller in which you can never determine what the end would
be until it arrives.
The moment he asked me to stay back and take
a leave, I called my friend and to all my surprise he was still there in the
city. I boarded the ‘Metro’ again to meet him to rejuvenate all the bonds which
got strong with tides of time...
And
that concludes the journey which started on a dull note. All our life, we
mostly spend our time thinking what could have been possibly true and what we
could have done. We always strive for betterment and that is something which we
always aim for, but there is no end to this search of betterment. And, we
compromise or learn to compromise what we have despite of its utmost
importance. It’s not that we don’t realize, the sense of realization is always
there but there always lies a preference, a preference which we all opt for.
“Life
in a Metro” is a journey which not only reflects important aspects towards an
individual’s journey of life but also helps to differentiate the preference. A
preference can change an individual’s life.
“Life in a Metro is a
never ending tale which began just to continue forever”
