Essence of Friendship

My Article called "The essence of Friendship!!" was published in Satyam Nipuna internal magazine in the August, 2005 edition. It was the friendship week and I wrote the article for friendship day.



It was 10:30 in the morning when I was sipping a cup of hot Coffee and impatiently waiting for my friends to join in. Our regular adda was in the College canteen. After classes, we regularly met here over some Samosas and some precious college gossips, Today we would be meeting again recollecting and reliving the college days. I still remember the taste of Hot Samosas with Tamarind sauce, which I bet we'll get nowhere. The song from Rockford "Yaaron, Dosti… badi hi haseen hai"… was like an anthem for all of us. Oh! The unforgettable College days …all the reasonable/ unreasonable dreams, the numerous meaningless laughters, all the fun, treats for every small and big reasons, oh! the exam preparations. … All the post "Dil Chahata Hai" promises and schedules of keeping in touch with each other no matter what, all the crazy photo sessions and autograph books, and how could any one forget the very touchy and teary farewell party.

But reality bites…gradually we started losing touch. Every time a plan was made, I would have to drop out for some or the other reason. It's now more than 5 months since I last met them. Suddenly a lot of noise in the vicinity broke the silence and got me back to the present. It was break time and the canteen was buzzing with noise and activity, but today I felt a little left out as I knew no one there. Suddenly the inquisitive eyes of a familiar face caught my attention. She was our Canteen in-charge. Seeing me sitting alone, she came towards me and we exchanged some pleasantries. She said that my friends met quite regularly and it was only me who did not come. I knew that too. Every time I would be the one to miss this get-together as I would be really busy with work during weekdays, and busy catching up with my family members on weekends. I was a little free this weekend to make up for the missed out addas, and so eagerly waiting to meet them. She asked if I would be interested to much some samosas like before, but I wanted to wait till the arrival of my gang. I was remembering all the loving nicknames with which we used to call each other, all the leg pulling sessions and getting excited. I was wondering will things be the same as before, or have things changed?

As usual I was the only one to reach on time, while others stuck to their own ISTs (IST/ Indian Standard Time for many of us means "running late"). I hated waiting, but as usual reached first, even on knowing how punctual others were, I could not wait to meet them, that too after five long months. But no one except me seemed excited to meet. I was thinking of how to react to their weird stories when they narrate how they got late. It was okay to wait for sometime, but waiting for an hour? It was 11:30 A.M. and I was still… waiting!
After a while, two of my friends arrived conversing and giggling at some seemingly funny topic. They seemed as happy and cheerful as ever. They were blaming it on one another for getting late, while we still waited for the arrival of the third one. All the annoyance that I had gathered for their delayed arrival had vanished with just a warm hug and a broad smile. The two- Sara & Anna who'd just arrived were getting impatient waiting for Pooja to arrive. "She is always late", "She knows nothing about time management" were some of the comments they made and I laughed thinking, look who's talking about time management??!@!@!! We all bursted out in laughter. I got a vivid update of all that I missed during the last five months. To my realization it was only me who had missed all the fun. The rest of them were still the same. To be more precise, it was me who was losing touch with them, and not the other way round. They are still the same… Suddenly Pooja arrived exactly two hours after the decided time… but my God, she was limping, her left leg was swollen and bandaged. We ran towards her trying to help her walk towards the chair. She apologized frantically for the delay and told her how she had met with a small accident and though with great difficulty she kept her promise to meet up. She was as excited as I was. All my apprehensions of a change in others' behavior had gone by then. We were again back to our usual fun filled days, sipping yet another cup of hot coffee and yes, the hot and tasty samosas with some hot discussion topics queued up one after the other. Many of us spend the largest portion of our lives building our careers, and the softer aspects of life like friendships are often pushed to the corners, little realizing its importance. We keep meeting new people who become our acquaintances, but not friends. Some even have no one whom they can call in their bad times. They are at the mercy of life, standing alone. This is what I call living in a world ruled by materialism. We all are trapped into this world, but can we all not take some time out to remind our friends once in a while that we are there for each other?

Friends cheer us when we're depressed.
Friends challenge us to get beyond our reasonable boundaries.
Friends motivate us when we're ready to give in;
Friends are there for us when life falls apart.

…Probably, too many to list.

When God created the world and all the majestic things in it, when he streaked the heavens with radiant colours and the earth with grandeur of plains, oceans and mountains, he outdid all by creating friends.

Wishing you all Happy Friendship Day everyday Its never too late…your friend could be just a call away…waiting for your call /mail. Never lose out True friends because they are very precious and they like you for what you are!
A good friend is someone who knows the song in your heart, and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words."



- Contributed by - By Shwetha. R. Gadwal from N & S.

Compare all the way - My first article in Deccan Chronicle

Published in Hyd local paper - Deccan Chronicle in Teen Chronicle on Date: June 24, 1998.

Compare all the way. I would like to know if comparisons can ever motivate anyone to produce better results. Every parent loves to compare their children's performance with that of others. Well, the grass is inevitably greener on the other side of the fence. While sincerely seeking to make their children work harder, they not only compare academic abilities and other skills but also the way they conduct themselves, eat, sleep or brush their teeth. The worst part of the whole thing is that the parents do not make any consideration for the fact that one human being is naturally different from the other and their child is an unique individual in himself. Suppose the girl next door scores more than you, the same old story begins: why didn't you get a better score? I may want to get a better score but certainly not to boost someone else's ambition or to show another person down. If I make an attempt to score better marks, it would be for the sole purpose of furthering my career. Getting better marks, to me, has nothing to do with putting over my best pal. The perverse pleasure of excelling at someone else's expense does not allure me. I do not need the thought of humbling my friend to motivate me to score better marks. The only thing I would feel if the maid's daughter did better than me in her exams is a significant amount of pride and a lot of happiness she had so well without all the luxuries that make life easier for me. But the way my mother puts it, it would make one think that I was the greatest ingrate on the face of this planet and the biggest moron to boot. Why can we not be genuinely happy that the maid's daughter has done well? Why bring in the comaparison that dulls the edge of pride and joy? why not appreciate her in her own capacity and me in mine? Every teen goes through the process of being measured against someone else and inevitablycoming up short. Every household is sure to have witnessed at least one battle between an irate teen and an equally irate parent. Not only in matters pertaining to studies but even the very way you live is compared and criticised. All this will only serve to create a lot of bad blood between you and the person you are being compared to. It may give you a psychological complex that will haunt you the rest of your life. So parents, give us a break and let us do the best we can, be it in studying or just in being us.

My Favorite Poem - The Road Not Taken

The Road Not Taken

TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same, And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back. I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference

Poem by - Robert Frost.

IF..... by Rudyard Kipling - An Inspiring poem

IF..... ( The poem was there in our 10th Std - ICSE Syllabus)

If U can Dream and not make Dreams your Master;
If U can Think and not make thoughts your aim;
If U can keep your head,When all about you are losing theirs and blaming it onyou;
If U can trust yourself when all men doubt ,But make allowance for their doubting too;
If U can meet the two - imposed triumph and failurejust the same,Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;
If U can talk to crowds and keep ur virtue,Or, walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt U;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If U can wait and not be tired of waiting;
If U can fill the unforgiving minuteWith sixty seconds' worth of distance run -Yours is the Earth and Everthing THAT'S In It, And - Which is more - YOU'LL BE A MAN, my Son!

- Rudyard Kipling.