Fleeting Glimpses of the Few Last Memories – Part 3

7th April, 2007

Precious Simplicity…

Simple things seem so precious now… like tonight… when my roommates and I just spent the whole night chatting with each other… Not the “gossipy” chats that girls are alleged to hold when they are alone… Right from meaningful discussions about how Mansi should go about getting a student loan for going abroad for her higher studies, to serious analysis of behavioral discrepancies of some people I know, to sympathetic consolations for Muzammil’s distraught experiences as a journalist, to funny anecdotes of our school and college days, our conversation spanned just about everything…

The funny part was that, this was not the first time that we’d spent a night talking away to glory, jumping topics like crazy, even discussing nothing in particular at times! It was just that, it was the last time that I was doing this… I knew I’ll never get to do this again… we perhaps will chat at times, we’ll keep in touch and maybe even meet up occasionally – but I know that it’ll never be the same again…

As roommates, we at times just shared innocuous, unimportant, simple, everyday life details with each other… and that actually had a charm of its own! But once we do go our own separate ways, none of us would have the time to do so… and though the friendship would stay, the charm would not be the same…

I never knew a night of chatting with roommates could mean so much to me… but now I know this night’ll remain with me forever, one of those “few last memories” cherished beyond all measures… So truly is it said, one doesn’t really realize the importance of a thing, unless he/she has to abstain from it!

8th April, 2007

Packing blues…

I always have it, and this time it’s just spilt over… packing up all the stuff that I’ve acquired in five years, bang in five days – my worst nightmare come true…

Apart from that though, there is this air of finality again… I am doing this for the last time… the last journey ever, from Pune to Kolkata…

Honestly, there are too many emotions in my heart… and it gets more and more difficult by the day to put them all in words… perhaps, some things are indeed best expressed in unspoken words!

10th April, 2007

The final dates!

God’s been granting me wishes of late. He’s made me bump into very old & long lost friends, as if to tie up all loose ends before I leave the city finally… He’s let me spend time with people whom I’d have loved to get closer, as if to make up for the lost time… He’s helped me to wipe out bitter memories, and replace them all by newer, sweeter ones…

Today’s been a day of dates with such people… lunch with Abhijeet, a person with whom I got to spend much less time than what I’d have liked to, but has managed to impress me with his unparalleled sweetness in whatever little time he’s spent with me!

Coffee with Pratima, a friend who’s been in touch with me for the past year and a half solely through cell phones and the internet (bless the technologies!), despite being in the same city!

And dinner with a very dear friend, Aakaanksha, with whom I’d completely lost touch, but in whom I’d once found my twin soul! Almost three years isolated our last meeting with this one, and yet we could bare our souls to each other as if it were just yesterday!

If I were to mark out one particular day when I garnered the maximum of those “few last memories”, it’d be today, for sure…!

11th April, 2007

The Eleventh Hour…

Gati carried away all my belongings today… to be taken back to Kolkata, to my home… I am finally going home… Why then do I feel this way? Why then do I feel as if a part of my heart has been torn away? Why then do I have this excruciating pain of leaving behind all that is too precious to me?

I don’t know… All I know is that I don’t want to leave Pune… I want to stay on here, just a li’l bit longer…

12th April, 2007

Final Adieus on the Long Winding Road Back…

The last journey from Pune to Mumbai got over all too soon… The Mumbai-Pune Expressway has been a major attraction for me for long – with its endless tunnels and winding roads and hilly views… I’ve traversed this boulevard on countless occasions during the past five years – but still, today was different… today’s was the last journey…

The sensation of leaving a major chunk of my life behind heightened the most when the Innova that was to take me to the Mumbai Airport picked me up from home… I kept turning back to wave to my roommate, and to look at the roads and the places that I was leaving behind… I just couldn’t get enough… I kept looking back, until they disappeared completely from my view…

Soon enough, we hit the Expressway. I spent much of my time making a video of the Expressway – something that my co-passengers found to be pretty weird, but honestly, I couldn’t care less! Years from now, I’d love to recreate the sensation of this journey just by looking at these videos! Apart from, of course, showing it off to my friends and family there in Kolkata, the ones who haven’t had a chance to see it in person! Traveling down the Expressway is indeed quite an experience, at least to me, and I’d definitely recommend the same to all – and what better way to do it than through a live video!!

But the journey seemed shorter than ever… All too soon, I reached the airport, to be carried back to my home…

Sitting now in the Mumbai Airport, waiting for my flight and speaking to friends on phone in between jotting this piece down, that sensation of leaving everything behind has mellowed down a lot. Perhaps because this place hasn’t exactly been an inseparable part of my life during the past five years… or maybe, because this is the way of life!

Life doesn’t stop for anyone – not for the people you love the most, not for the times that you miss the most… I remember a familiar saying again: “time and tide wait for none”…!

So, now, I’m feeling different. The sensation of finally going home is sinking in… excitement about entering a new phase of life, a new way of life – the job life! I’ll be working, living a life which is very different from the one I’ve been used to… I’ll take small, uncertain steps in the beginning, but then I’ll grow confident and take surer steps towards success…

With a pang, I realize that now Pune has already become a part of my past – one that’ll always bring a smile on my lips – but all the same, a past. Maybe someday, I’ll reminisce about “those good ol’ days” to my children and grandchildren, the way our parents and grandparents do… but for now, I’m ready to leave my golden past behind, and move forward – to build for myself a new, sparkling future!!

And with that positive thought in mind, I finally board my flight back home…

Fleeting Glimpses of the Few Last Memories – Part 1
Fleeting Glimpses of the Few Last Memories – Part 2

Fleeting Glimpses of the Few Last Memories - Part 2

3rd April, 2007

Revisiting places that have had special significance during my stay here in Pune has been one of my pursuits lately, and a dinner at Bashos ranked pretty high on that list – it is a place which had been the turning point of my life in myriad ways!

Tonight, when my friends and I reached Bashos, I could feel the mist of memories clouding my eyes… especially the memory of my first visit to Bashos, which will be etched in my heart forever – for that, was the day I realized that miracles do happen in real life!

My mind raced back to my second year… circumstances had been quite cruel to me just before my birthday, and I remember praying fervently for something to happen on my special day, that would lighten up my life and give me a reason to look forward to live…

We’d been to Bashos for my birthday party, and it was there that God answered my prayers, and gave me my birthday gift – a Darling Angel, who gave me a million reasons to be happy, who never broke my trust, who was an absolute gem of a person!

God not only answered my prayers, he also granted them in a way that I’d never expected in my wildest daydreams! He made me experience the miracle of loving someone without any restraint or expectations, the miracle of being completely swept off my feet, and most importantly, the miracle of self-realization!!!

Life since then has never been the same… My Darling Angel is no more my lover, but that one-year relationship has given me more happiness and joys than the 24 summers that I’ve seen so far put together! And I did get something to cherish all my life – his unwavering friendship, love and companionship… so what if we are no longer lovers, I still love him as much as I did on that day in Bashos! Nothing’s changed, because he taught me a lot of lessons in life – and to live life without any expectations was one of them…

Bashos, like always, did make my heart ache, but the flood of his sweet memories, like always, stemmed the flow of my tears…

4th April, 2007

Kuchh baatein sirf ehsaas mein hote hain – translated, it means “some things can only be felt”…

Shopping for some necessaries was the primary aim today, but my heart was not in it… don’t know what made me do it, but I made my way towards the Sarasbaug temple midway through… and thereby added one more treasure to my collection of amazing memories… one of the “few last” ones!

Sarasbaug to my eyes seemed all decked up today, as if to wish me and bid good bye… the round red moon shimmering between the trees, the leaves swaying to a gentle breeze, the flowers in full bloom, the pond full of beautiful water lilies and lotuses looking like spots of white and pink among the green, green leaves… all the things I just love about the place… it was as if Sarasbaug was also yearning to give me one of those “few last memories” that I’d cherish forever…

The primary reason why I went alone today was because I wanted to feel the silent beauty of the place… this is the place which taught me the power of silence and how to enjoy it… the place where I rediscovered what “dignified silence” can do… as I slowly walked through each part of the park, I remembered all the times I’ve been there and spent good times… all the times when a walk through the beauty of the place had soothed my soul, and made a lot of things much easier to bear…

Sarasbaug looked as beautiful to me as on any other day… don’t know if I was imagining it, but it did feel at times that there was a melancholy tone to it today… I did try a few times to capture the beauty of the place on the lenses, but could not – and that’s when I heard someone whisper to me: “Kuchh baatein sirf ehsaas mein hote hain”… this trip no doubt is one of those!

5th April, 2007

The days of the “few last memories” are coming to an end… over the last few days, I’d been getting numerous calls, messages, mails – bidding farewell and wishing luck for the future… entreaties to keep in touch… but today, it seemed more final than ever…

When two of the people I’ve been closest to in this year left for home today in the morning, it felt sore… my heart sobbed and wept… the inevitable was come at last!

As if to seal the final proclamation of the ending, my date of departure was also settled upon today… now I know exactly how much time I have to create a few more “few last memories” and trust me, I’m trying very, very hard to utilize every moment of it…

And all the time, I still have that yearning in my heart – why couldn’t it last just a li’l bit longer…?

Fleeting Glimpses of the Few Last Memories - Part 1
Fleeting Glimpses of the Few Last Memories - Part 3

My Travel Chronicles - A Trek up the Parvati Hill!

1st April, 2007

The plan to visit the famous Parvati Temple in Pune was made all of a sudden… of course, I’d had it in my mind for quite some time now, but had never managed to execute it – at times for the lack of time, at others for lack of companions! Then, just when I’d decided upon visiting the place alone, things clicked and this very memorable and wonderful trip happened!

Two juniors of mine and I set off early in the morning (much later than what we’d initially planned, but it was still early morning for us late risers!) and made our way towards the desired destination – Parvati Hill! It is quite centrally located – an auto rickshaw could take you there either from Deccan (a 4 km drive) or from Swargate (just 1 km). Since we stay near Deccan, we naturally found it easier to reach the Hill via Deccan.

The Parvati Hill happens to be the highest peak of the city of Pune (it’s situated at a towering height of 2100 ft above sea level), and predictably, it offers a beautiful panoramic view of the entire city spread around it. In fact, some people visit the Temple daily, both for religious and health purposes – climbing up the 108 steps leading to the Temple makes sure that you burn whatever extra calories you have!

The temples on the Parvati Hill are among the oldest heritage structures in Pune and are reminiscent of the Peshwa dynasty. There are five temples in all on the Hill, one each for the Lords Devdeveshwara (Vitthal), Karthikeya, Vishnu & Ganesh, and one for the Goddess Parvati.

(pic above) The Devdeveshwara Temple

That’s about all the history and geography of the place that I’m gonna include in here! As usual, I did my share of the research for you guys, and anyone interested in reading up more about the place can visit Virtual Pune or Pune Line.

Of course, the main attraction of the Parvati Hill for me was the famous bird’s eye view of the city all around. I’d only heard about the magnificent panoramic view that it offers, but once I went there I realized that words could not have described even a quarter of the real beauty of the scene! In fact, even the pictures uploaded here only depict half of the real beauty of the views!

(pic above) A view from the Parvati Hill! Pic taken by me...

Up on top of the Hill, it felt as if we indeed were on top of the world! We could see Pune at different angles from different parts of the Hill… and what a view it was! Multi-storied houses looked like small blocks that kids play with, the cars plying below resembled miniature toys, the roads and the river appeared to be sleek grey and green ribbons…!

Apart from the amazing panoramic view of Pune, exploring the Hill itself was a treat too… what with the ancient temples, the Peshwa Museum, the trees and the greenery, and most of all, the breath of fresh air, the two-n-half hours that we spent there seemed like an eternity in paradise!

(pic above) Can you make out the roads and the cars?

Pic taken by Anupam Prakash, my junior, and edited a bit by me!

Of course, we had to pay a price for this memorable trek - the scorching heat had depleted us of all our vital energies by the time we descended the 108 steps, even though we’d been smart enough to carry three litres of glucose water with us! We therefore thought it fitting to top the trip up by a sumptuous lunch at a wonderful place called Sukanta, near Deccan, which would wash away whatever fatigue we had… and it indeed served the purpose! The cool sugarcane juice and the yummy aamras soon revived us, and by the time we were home, we were already making plans of revisiting the place soon!

Though I’m not sure of that plan taking shape, you surely could whip up a plan to visit the Parvati Hill – trust me, you wouldn’t regret it!

Fleeting Glimpses of the Few Last Memories - Part 1

29th March, 2007

The appointed day has come at last… five long years become history today… a history that exists only in our memories… a history that is known only to us… a history that is at once beautiful and gruesome, wonderful yet terrible, inspires love but is still hated…!

The last day of college life… the last day of exams… the whole batch seemed to have gathered in front of the college – including the people who usually scamper off to the nearest hang-out places as soon as exams end, the people who usually flee the scene before the inevitable “re-evaluating” the paper begins (this category includes yours truly! I hate it when my batchmates start discussing what the right answers are/should have been – I mean, who wants to write the entire exam all over again?!)… even the ones who usually finish their two-hour papers in an hour’s time…! Given the fact that our exams ended at 6 pm, and that most of us hadn’t been sleeping well for the past few days, courtesy the exams, that’s saying quite something! Perhaps it just showed that in spite of everything, we still cared for the small things in life!

We were moving on… on to a new phase of our career… on with life…

We were leaving a lot behind… our friends… our carefree life… our favourite hang out places…

It was truly not sinking in yet… some of us are settled in life… some aren’t… some know where they would be in the next few months… some aren’t sure about the next few days! It still felt like the ending of any other year, when the reassuring feeling of coming back for yet another year at Symbi filled our hearts, and the only promises exchanged were the ones of meeting up and keeping in touch in the holidays!

But it was different this time, and the air of finality was everywhere… our eyes were filled with anticipation of the uncertain, sadness of leaving our identities behind, anxiety of creating a new one in the big, bad world… shouldering new responsibilities, not only of charting the growth of our career paths and making our families proud, but also of living up to the name and reputation of being a “Symbi-ite”!

The heart still refused to believe that its time to bid adieu… the mind stopped the many tears from rolling down the cheeks… we promised a lot – to ourselves, to our college, to our friends… and wondered silently, which of them would life let us keep?

As of now, though, we all had our own plans made – surprisingly enough, they all sounded quite similar… Plans to enjoy the last few days in the city of Pune… to take full advantage of our carefree student-life that can never be replicated… to eat, drink and be merry… to revisit all those favourite haunts which are etched in our memories forever… to create a “few last memories” to cherish forever… to exchange the last vows of keeping in touch!

30th March, 2007

Revisiting the past days… reliving the old times spent together… creating few last memories to be cherished lifelong… catching up on whatever we’ve missed… yes, that was the plan…

Words never stopped pouring… feelings rebelled… hearts refused to stay calm… we wanted to make up for lost time… we wished the night could last forever… and yet, all good things do come to an end…

Food and drinks couldn’t befuddle us, eyelids heavy with sleep couldn’t deter us, the uncertainties of the future lying ahead couldn’t dampen us – we wanted to enjoy every minute, every second, every moment… and we did.

Some things are best left unsaid… our feelings of the night fall into that bracket!! I just wish it could last longer…

31st March, 2007

For the first time, this new realization dawned on me – leaving college does not only mean bidding farewell to friends from my batch… it also means an imminent parting with all those people who are part of my precious memories at different points of time in these five years here… juniors, friends from different streams of life, people who’ve helped me in times of need and adversity…

It is difficult to say which incident in particular triggered this feeling… perhaps it was the whole of the evening… an evening in which a few of my juniors wanted to create those “few last memories” that we all are craving for at this moment!

At ordinary times, there would’ve been nothing remarkable about the outing – a normal movie-n-dinner plan… but this was different… because my juniors’ meant this to be a personal farewell to me! Different, because all throughout, that air of finality still hung about us… every moment we enjoyed together was precious, because we knew that these were parts of the “few last memories”…

Once again, reliving the past… revisiting the old times spent together… and lastly, promises of keeping in touch…

And once again, the helpless yearning for the night to last a little longer…

1st April, 2007

Yet another addition in my collection of the “few last memories”… this time, with another set of my juniors! You could call it an outing, a picnic, a religious trip – could’ve been anything, but who knows better than I that this trek up the Parvati hill to visit the Temples there, the royal lunch at Sukanta, the whole morning in fact, was also meant to be one of those “few last memories”!

Not that it diminished the enjoyment of the trip… no, not even one bit… in fact, it perhaps enhanced the flavor more… and most importantly, it threw up some very memorable moments…

The journey, the exploration, the laughter and the companionship, the enjoyment and the merry-making… in a few days, they’ll no more be a part of my life… they’ll just become memories… such a sore realization!

When the sumptuous lunch at Sukanta got over, I had the same pit-feeling in my stomach – couldn’t it last a bit longer…?

Fleeting Glimpses of the Few Last Memories - Part 2
Fleeting Glimpses of the Few Last Memories - Part 3