A day spent contemplating

Yeah this is Ashutosh, I am travelling in a train to Lucknow, a sudden trip to Lucknow came after papa asked me to come for a Pooja ceremony. So I am off to Lucknow on the same day, generally papa does not ask very often to come home, when he asked me to come actually he had also asked chachu to come, chachu due to  some reason was not able to go, I thought papa would feel a little bad as no one is there for Pooja. So I decided to go.

My day started off well with chachu praising the omelette that I made for him in the morning, I made two two egg omelette one for chachu and one for me with breads and a cup of tea each. Then I started studying Indian polity, an hour into studies I got a call from papa asking to come and after that I got the reservation booked. I had to attend an innovation project meeting in college at 1300 hrs so I decided to leave for the railway from the college itself as there was no point coming all the way back from college and travelling the same distance in the same direction again to Anand Vihar Railway Station. I told chachi about my plan and she started preparing my food for the journey. After that I got my red check shirt ironed and took bath and also got ready for the college, I also had brunch so that I don’t feel hungry in the college. And here was I ready to depart with a back pack containing a laptop, its charger, a small alternative Nokia phone for emergency in case my android’s phone battery give up. Bag also contained daily stuff like shorts, tees, a toothbrush and a book of Arihant publication. I touched feet of chachu and chachi, prayed to God for a comfortable, safe journey and left home for collegeJ. But this was not it, something disastrous was to follow my day.

I reached college at 1257 hrs sharp and reached directly to the dept. room of electronics and I wanted to meet pandey sir, I saw paramjeet sir there so I enquired him about pandey sir. To my surprise I came to know that he had not reached college yet or maybe he did not come. I came outside the dept. and was looking for other chaps who were there in the project, but I did not find no one. Somehow I had come to know that this meeting never was any serious, everyone took it for granted but me L . I was really pissed off as I already imagined what I about to face was, I called Ashish in anger and told him the situation, I vented out my anger and he was like least affected knowing the fact  that I had a train at 1845 hrs the same evening, I could not go home and come back; I had full 5 hours of time to kill with no one’s company, deep down I was expecting from him that he’d ask me to come over to his place, he did not. Both mayank and siddharth were not at their rooms either, so I had no idea how was I going to survive till 1800 hrs. I was really in anger and I wanted to expose the unseriousness of everyone, so I called anirudh who was also in the project and narrated the same to him as well, but no one could help me at that point of time. I was now wandering in the corridors of dept. with my mind engrossed in thinking what to do next. Then I saw Roushan and Jyotir, guys from CS dept., we had talked for the next 20 mins about different topics and soon I started feeling out of place and I made a call to Haris, I told Haris about the whole drama and how I was screwed. I was hopeful that Haris would ask me to come over to his place, even that hope shattered the very next moment as he had told me that he too was out. I could see what was coming my way ahead. By then it was about 1400 hrs, I went to dept. room again just to make sure that sir really did not turn up.

Now I was all alone with 4 hrs to spend, I could not go anywhere and I had no idea what I was to do. I decided to wait till 5 in the park and spend time alone. I went to a park near my college, a place we often pass by or at times stopover. I went to my favourite place in the park and sat on the bench. I was all alone and was watching people passing by, sitting in different places, there were couples who were having quality time, there were two men sitting on the bench in front who were watching sultan and doing commentary of the movie at the same time. I thought of doing something as it was only option to make time go fast, so I thought of writing the day’s experience as it was not just the other day. I did not have a pen so I bought a pen for Rs. 3, I gave two two rupees coin and got a mentos orange flavour candy for the change. I came back to my favourite place and took the only book out of my bag and started penning down what I was feeling and how my day went till then. I ended that writing on an emotional note, not wanting to write more I stopped and started studying about Indian polity and read the book for good 40-50 mins. I was tired of sitting and I moved off that place thinking of going somewhere else, but it was a hot day; Park’s windy atmosphere was the only shelter so after roaming for a while and I again sat on one of the bench; this time different. Then I started pondering about myself and my life what all I have achieved and who all have been special to me and who all have disappointed me despite my best efforts to be friends with them. I was emotional and at times I cried. When I am emotional I eat, so to get over that state of mind, I started eating my tiffin, had my stomach filled with enough food for the next 3-4 hours. My water bottle was empty so I decided to go to college to get my bottle filled with drinking water. Then I came out of college and was standing by the road on footpath in front of mother diary shop and was watching lavish cars being driven by some really young boys and girls with their partners on the seat next to them. I too day dreamed myself being in those cars one day with my girl. I stood there for half an hour and then it was about to 1700 hrs so I headed for the Anand Vihar railway station and I took taxi from Noida mor and reached railway station in next 30 mins. There I was thirsty so I bought a bottle of coke, then went to the railway station, I reached station an hour before departure so I had to wait there as well.  A while before the departure I boarded the train and I was heading towards Lucknow.

Right now it is 2335 hrs in the train and I have already watched fantastic four movie in the train and I am right now wrapping up with this writing work. As of now train is running late by an hour or more, passed Moradabad 20 mins back and train’s ETA at Lucknow station is predicted at 0430 hrs. So here I am signing off ..bye ..and wish myself a safe and comfortable journey J .

A.