The Metropolitan Dilemma

One morning I started from home hoping to reach office on time to attend an all important meeting. The day looked pleasant on the onset with birds chirping along happily and the wind blowing softly. The beginning was happy. The mind was relaxed with a good night’s sleep. The delivery of the two essentials- newspaper and tea had not missed their deadlines and the day looked promising. All the people I met in the morning exchanged pleasantries without much ado. Everything was just fine until the engine of my car was brought to life and the vehicle was steered to the main road that resides in close proximity to my residence (I can say the main road is happily married to my residence).


The streets were filled with gamut of vehicles. From the thunderous, dark smoke spitting, under maintained – heavily over utilized trucks to the non-pollutant, snail paced bullock cart dragged by a extremely malnourished bull- the protruding ribs of which a kindergarten kid can conveniently count, flocked the street. Road rage is a common place in such situations where people just want to beat all odds and reach their destination in a record time. In the process, if a few people and animals come under the wheels of their speeding vehicles, the joy and jubilation of having made it to the destination much before others, surpasses the grief of having lost a few Samaritans who laid their life for this one cause. It’s still unfortunate that people still talk of conquering the Everest as a greatest achievement by humans while conveniently forgetting the adventure, risk, effort and extreme pressure exuded by folks in metros. This is an unfair world and this is a living testimony. I had a long gasp of polluted air to convince myself that I too can beat all odd’s to reach office on time. The mind however was restless.


The clogged roads normally have a few common traits. The so called bumper-to-bumper traffic (which ideally means in 9 out of 10 occasions the guy behind will bump into the vehicle in front) doesn’t really subside irrespective of the time of the day. Even in those situations when the vehicular density is relatively low, the behaviors of bumper-to-bumper is prominent because it’s just in our blood. What if the guy in front reaches his destination before me? What if the vehicle in front gets to veer past a traffic junction and I get struck staring the red light for a few minutes haplessly staring the fellow souls wearing a countenance that of a lost battle? The heart feels heavy in resentment and the breath loses its normal rhythm. When you are a part of the battle, the only thing you need to do is to fight. It’s the survival of the fastest. The mind started growing suspicious again of victory, but I laid its fear to rest by thumping my chest with my fist and with a loud proclaim – I can do it. We sometimes need to get into that battle like mindset.


I got my car onto the main road and maneuvered it in to small pockets of gaps that are occasionally left open by rookie drivers. Appreciating my driving skills myself I was always on the offensive. The overtakes were courageous and honking was deafening. I was a man on a mission; a mission to reach office on time. I had everything in my stride when another vehicle apparently driven by another guy with a similar mindset like me came from nowhere and posed a extreme risk of heavy collision. My heart skipped a beat and the right leg searched for the brake lever like never before. The pressure on the brakes brought the car to a screeching halt. The situation was similar on the other side.


The era, in which we live, the word sympathy has gone to oblivion. I wanted to come back to my senses from what had just transpired. I wished to take a few breaths of relief, but the commuters who had crowded from every direction, stated honking as if the world would end if their vehicles didn’t move an inch for a split second. I wanted to thank my stars for having averted the lurking danger and move on, but I happened to notice the other guy making exaggerated hand signals at me. It was a clear indication that I did not possess the adequate driving skills. No man when challenged about his driving skills, his inability to attract girls or his inability to be in control after downing a few pegs, appreciates it even if he’s the worst at it. After all dignity is our birth right and we must fight for it even if we are internally convinced that we are bad at it.


I retaliated back with similar hand gestures and soon the situation turned sour. The guy screamed something at the top of his voice. I could see his vocal cords vibrate and collide, but thanks to the incessant honking, the words didn’t reach my ears. It was my turn now. The owners of the jammed vehicles started to stare at me anticipating a retaliated scream. I did not feel like shouting back and wanted to steer off my vehicle past the commotion. But, pride was at stake. At that moment I realized the burden of anticipation of millions that Tendulkar carries on his shoulders every time he goes out to bat. I just had 8-10 souls waiting in anticipation. I was challenged. I felt like a hero whom the crowd expected to walk out of his car, pull out the intruder, thrash him and bring him down to his knees. I pitied them since nothing of that sort was going to happen. However I had to give back something. I did not want the tag of a loser hanging around my neck. So I reciprocated by a few thunderous words that were so carefully toned that the enemy felt something drastic was uttered, yet could not make out what exactly was spoken. His exasperation and the focus shift of the fellow commuters towards him made me quietly applaud my talent. Self appreciation is best when you don’t get it from others.


The enemy shouted ‘mind your business’ and I was lucky enough to hear it. It was neither damaging nor insulting. I happily handed back his words screaming ‘I know my business, you mind yours’. Immediately I was lost after my words since I didn’t know what my business was; I still am clueless about it! Nevertheless, the volley of verbal abuses continued for a brief while, but none of us was courageous enough to get out of the car for a physical fight. It’s better to stand at a distance and boast of your unfathomable prowess than to actually display it and make it evident that you don’t have any.


The traffic police intervened and ordered us to get going. They would have seen enough of this in their daily routines. Just as we stared to get back to business, the enemies stared at each other. It was as if to say the police saved you, else you were a goner! But deep inside there was a relief that nothing much happened and staring at the watch, the lost time sent the adrenaline pumping, and the race against time reemerged to reach the meeting on time!!

Cricket on our mind, but why are we unmindful of it?

I choose to write on this topic since there has been a lull on activities related to cricket over the past few months. Although cricket still is very much a part of our minds, we appear to have become unmindful about it. Can a father disown his child, can a theist disown his God, or can a lover disown the thoughts of his beloved? Mighty impossible and implausible as it seems. Similarly, a cricketer cannot disown cricket or the squirmiest of thoughts related to it. The sport runs in the blood of his veins all day through, the thoughts occupy his mind more than he imagines it could, and he drools in vain despair as to why he’s opting to stay away from action than be a part of it.
 The question is why? Have we played enough? Don’t we have the time? Has the passion encountered a near fatal attack? Has life become more demanding and challenging? Have we lost the discipline? Do we see no merit in keeping oneself fit? Many questions can be asked, but have we spared a thought on what is keeping us away from our love? Well, honestly I have not so far, and in all likelihood, so wouldn’t have you.

When we could manage to be a part of this earlier, why not now? Ponder over this for a brief moment.

The history has been fabulous. We have tasted both victories and defeats in the past. I’m not a statistician (by any stretch of your imagination) to provide analysis of whether victories have outnumbered the defeats or vice versa. But, what I can certainly say is that the happiness has outscored the disappointment (and that too by a huge margin). If being in the nets is fun, then being on the field is extremely satisfying. The desire gets fulfilled. It’s like a feeding on a five-course-meal after observing a day’s fast. The magic has to be recreated. The obscured passion needs to be resurfaced. The cramping body needs to be hydrated. The disintegrated group needs to be reformed. The old friends should meet the new ones. The mirth should return back. The post-match beer sessions should find their way back. The opposition has to be slaughtered. The equipments need to see the sun again. The sportsman spirit needs to get a new spirit.

The lover needs to meet his love - Come back folks, CRICKET NEEDS YOU.

Goal setting - How to handle this?

The most interesting (or rather intriguing) cult of modern thinking is the one of goal setting. Most modern leadership gurus emphasize on this particular fact of goal setting and how this act can elevate individuals from the realm of ordinary to something spectacular! We have all heard it through some medium or the other that goal setting is an essential tool and jotting down your goals into a notebook and consistently reviewing them every day, and incessantly working on the subtle details can take you closer to the stated objective. Am I critical about this practice? Do I have my reservations in believing this? Am I an ardent follower of goal setting? Do I believe that this really can help elevate oneself towards excellence? My first statement of this blog gives a rather strange mix of my thoughts. On the one hand it sounds positive and on the other, it has a negative connotation to it. Read on to know more……


Historically, basing it on the limited awareness that I possess on the subject of goal setting, there have been a few exceptionally prominent personalities who have demonstrated the art of goal setting and chasing down on them to transform the dreams hidden in the goals to reality. Alexander the Great is one of those awe-inspiring figures, who set down on a mission of conquering the whole world, but fell short of achieving it. Swami Vivekananda was another such phenomenal personality who travelled the globe to impart philosophy and spirituality to the western world, and in return provide some financial aid to his countrymen. Mahatma Gandhi set on a goal to free the entire nation by using his omnipotent means of nonviolence. As Beethoven composed music and Michelangelo moved his hands with dexterity over his masterpiece sculptures, these legends always set goals to their highest of standards and invariably achieved them. What drove them to achieve their goals? Was it a goal written on a piece of paper that was reviewed every morning and inspiration drawn from that? I don’t think that was the case. The internal drive to achieve their goals was the fuel to a burning desire. A desire (good or bad) was the propelling force to reach out to their goals.


So why is it that in this modern era, special emphasis is given on writing and reviewing of goals? Has mankind so evolved that one needs to review his goals every morning and draw inspiration from that? Why can’t we be naturally motivated like the people mentioned earlier? Does the fire in the belly drowse each night and rekindling is required in the morning? If the fire burns constantly, where is the need for relighting it? Could it be possible that with evolution, the memory fails us every night and a fresh dose of goal reviewing is required every morning?


The fact is simple. We, in this modern age and society, set far too many goals and try to achieve them in unrealistic timeframes. We break goals in to personal, professional, finance, health - to name a few, and wish to achieve each of these goals. Faster the better seems to have become the mantra. Setting simple goals and doing the things necessary to achieve them decides the outcome. Life cannot just be lived by chasing dreams and achieving goals. Goals should be set; there is no doubt about that. But goals should not rip the fun out of your life. If chasing a goal is stopping you from meeting your friends, even achieving that goal will not give you happiness. Happiness also lies in small things and there has to be mix of audacious goal chasing with sublime involvement in a hobby or any activity that pleases the soul.


An engine cannot run consistently forever. It needs to cool down. A human cannot keep running behind and chasing goals all the time. He needs to relax as well. What I am insinuating is that, once we know what we need to achieve, take small steps in improving yourself, and work passionately to achieve that goal. No goal is too big unless it’s realistic. Figure out what you are passionate about doing and make that the goal of your life. Once you know what you want to achieve, and if the fire inside burns to keep the motivation ignited, you don’t need to refuel your memory. Every aspect of life can be managed by diligently applying oneself to a cause and once done, there won’t be any looking back. The push comes from inside and not from the outside.


Like the tides strike the shore with relentless force and subdues to a state of calm, the passion needs to stir the soul such sublimely that it brings the best in an individual. Once the best is delivered, the goal is invariably achieved and then calmness shall prevail in the face of achievements. The next tide shall surely rise and so shall the goals - and every time, the outcome will be equally spectacular!!