The bike trip and the feel of redemption

                                                       The bike trip and the feel of redemption

For any student of SRM University Chennai, the favorite weekend destination is Pondicherry (Pudducherry). Whenever we get time, we just rush down to the bus stop and catch a bus for pondi! And in most cases, this is done without any sort of planning.

So, during my study leaves (so called), i was bored to the last degree. And then it occurred to me, that the weather is beautiful and i need some time with myself somewhere quiet. Well, what could i have done next? Grabbed my bike and called up a friend.

As Darrel Royal rightly said, " Breaks balance out. The sun don't shine on the same ol' dog's rear end everyday."

Morning 9:30, we pushed from our college on a bit rusty, and a bit old, Splendor +. The bike might be an economy bike, but for that day, it was nothing less than a Harley for us.

I couldn't have asked for a better weather for a road trip. The sky was filled with clouds and not a single ray of sun. There was cool breeze and the landscapes were spectacular. For all those who say Chennai has no beauty in it, well, u certainly have not experienced what i have experienced that day.

We stopped for a couple of coffee breaks and then there we were. We sat on a rock at the rock beach for about half an hour, listening to the waves clashing with the rocks. It was the sound of the nature....pure and untarnished.. Then we had our lunch. And then grabbed two cans of Tuborg green and went to Auro beach.

The clouds parted a bit by then. We were sitting on the beach with our time in the sun and sipping the chilled beer. And then i understood, how Andy Dufresne's friends might have been feeling sitting on the tar roof on a sunny day having chilled beer.

That feeling, for me was the feel of redemption.

And, then we headed back to pavilion. That was the end of it. Of a journey, not so big or special in any conventional sense, but special and appeasing in every other sense.

Heres one to the bikes and the journeys they had.

Peace.

Nostalgia

The other day I visited my cousin sister. I have two nieces, and spent fairly good time with them. I sat on the couch and was watching them play, and then I started reminiscing, about my past, my childhood or should I say, of all of us who were born in late 80’s and early 90’s.

And hence, here begins my nostalgia.

I talk of a time, where playing included leg work and not thumbs and fingers. When early morning we used to dash out of our homes to play cricket during summer vacations, and the game went on till the evening.

The first “Pepsi” we ever had was not the ones we drink nowadays. It was those various coloured drink, which used to come in plastic tubes. They were a craze in those times, available everywhere, outside schools, parks, shops. EVERYWHERE.

We were innocent and carefree back then. There were no restrictions on us as on where to go or not. Right from the time of tri-cycles till we left behind our bi-cycles, for us the world was ours. Just grab ‘em up and rule the streets.

Coming to indoor entertainment, that was a time when the world saw some real and good cartoons. They inspired us in their own little ways. Tales Pin and in that Baloo’s awesome flying techniques was my first inspiration to become a fighter pilot. Mowgli (Jungle Book) is still a legend and that name alone makes us smile. Then there was Dexter’s Laboratory and Pokemon, Simba-The Lion King, The Legend of Zorro, and the list goes on and on and on. The point here is, those shows being a cartoon/animated entertainment, still taught us a lot of things. And ofcourse, who can ever forget the great Tom and Jerry show.

We belong to a generation, who has seen both the inside and outside world. As kids we were happy to get small Hotwheels set, and the biggest asset anyone of us owned was the video games. I still remember, when we used to exchange the game cassettes. “I’ll give you Super Contra for your Ninja Turtle.” Still makes me laugh, how we were negotiators at such early age.

Today, a 6 year old carries an iPad, a Galaxy Note II, and at the very least a PSP. Outdoor sports are like alien to them. Where once cricket was the sport which every child have played in their childhood, now its that which no one knows!

Tall buildings, huge apartments, budding offices and complexes everywhere, where is the place where the kids can go and play? Where has their world gone?

Pizzas and Burgers were like the rarest of cuisines that we had, and  now, those are the ones most frequently consumed.

Whose fault is that? I don't know. I just know that there has been a huge paradigm shift. And that is not for the good. 

Education- Difference of perception.

                            Education- Difference of perception.

I  was attending an un-conference at Aaruush '12 (the Techno-management fest of SRM University, Chennai). The topic of discussion was, "Deviation from engineering, after graduation." All said, the flow of discussion went really well. 

Mr. Ratan Manglani was a personnel from "Teach For India." He went on about how the system works and how many children they educated. And then he showed us a case, of a slum dweller girl, who got education. In one video of hers, she was addressing a TED event in Mariana Trench, Mumbai. The confidence she had her in her voice gave me goosebumps. Terrific English and public speaking skills she had. And then she said her last lines .The last lines of hers, they still ring in my ears and make me think over and over again. The lines were "Yes, I AM an educated slum dweller, and I am proud of it."

For many it may have been just a touching video, an inspiration. But for me it opened my so long closed eyes to a whole new perception towards education. We, those of us who are born and raised with good family background, who opened their eyes to the world of knowledge and education. We, who at the age of three had a privilege to go to schools and then continue to pursue different degrees as per our  interests, it seems that we are the ones who don't understand the true value of education. As the trend goes today, we all whine about going to schools or colleges everyday, or study load, "peer-pressure", or homeworks. Many of us also just hope to somehow graduate from college and then start working. We didn't understand the privilege we enjoy then, and we don't do it now. 

But for people who were not so gifted as us? Getting a proper education is one distant dream for them. A dream, for which they'll be willing to sacrifice anything. I used to see my mother teaching the kids of the house maids who used to work at our home. Then, I didn't understand the meaning of any of it. But now i think i get the gist just fine.

As they say - "People value only those things, which they don't have. If they have something, right from the beginning, they never understand its value, until its gone."

Its not about developing the nation. Its not about doing charity work. Its all about - Being Human.