"Practically Happy"

This is my second blog in as many weeks and I am once again getting interested in writing. The topic for this blog is something which I wanted to write for past many years but every time I thought of it, I dropped the idea thinking of it to be too bold (in other terms of course) to write. But here I am writing on it. The topic is as you might have read the heading,” Practically Happy”.

26^th July, 2012 was the day I started my college life. The whole first 15 months period of my college life was as happening as a Bollywood Film. One of the reasons that it was happening was not the situations but the situations I always used to end up in. The reason I used to end up in those situations was because I was not practical. Never being selfish, helping out anyone, trying to make everyone happy and making fool of myself. Any person who spoke sweetly and conversed with me nicely used to become my good friend and I used to share problems and other stuff. I never cared what the other person thought and could do with this attitude of mine but I was happy. The trust used to come easily.

But Life always has a better plan or at least another plan. The bad patch started and due to this attitude of mine I ended up in worse situations one after the other. Those bad times taught me to be “practical in life”. What does the word “practical” means? I started thinking the other way, started to think if anyone is not taking advantage of me, “what would I get out of this?” thoughts started coming in. Less mindless talks, more thoughtful conversation, no long chats unless something important, hardly long phone calls and a good amount of free time which I can spend without people.

It did help me, now I hardly get carried away by false promises. The prospect of chatting with any damn person seems ‘childish’.  Am I happy? Yes I am happy I am more focused on things, I can easily talk studies rather than gossips. As your parents say be practical in life that will help you, getting carried away never does. Yes it is the truth practically we are happy because success can be achieved more on this path. But on a random day sitting and watching the rains or the setting sun takes you back to nostalgia. The nostalgia is nothing but those carried away days. Although we got into troubles, although we cried we became emotional but we were happy because all those things were done with an innocent mind and innocent heart. No matter how hard the situations were, we never regretted taking any steps during those times.

Memories are always those times in which you never thought about things. You just carried yourself into scheme of things. So whenever anyone asks me “Am I happy?” I say yes but in my heart,” I always say practically, yes” I have learned taking decisions through my mind, I can never think with my heart now. But on a random day standing in the balcony with a free mind, I do miss the emotional fool creature I was which I could never be!

With Love & Regards,

Purvil Kamdar 

Happy Birthday to me!

I have literally left writing nowadays. I have thoughts and things in my mind to frame up a blogpost but then my lazy mind gets in the way and makes me thing that writing is now a hobby of past. But no here I am finally back to writing and the day couldn’t be much more special then my birthday.

Birthdays, to be true to myself are those days which I never enjoy. I used to enjoy other people’s birthdays more as compared to my birthdays. Right until the 18^th birthday, I hardly remember any of my birthdays as none of them were special, just a quiet time with the family and that was it, that was a Happy Birthday to me scenario. But the 19^th birthday totally changed my perception about birthdays. The reason for it? The so awesome people around me.

 I still remember, I had just a single person calling me at midnight on my 18^th birthday. So with all those things in my mind, the 19^th birthday approached closer. I had my sessional exams on, so the little hope of anyone coming to my place at the midnight was all gone. It was quarter to 12 and I received my first phone call of the night and I thought not bad enough, at least I will be getting some phone calls on this night. Slowly and steadily, I got more and more phone calls and messages and just when it was 12:15 the doorbell rang and out of nowhere my friends were standing on the door waiting for me! The joy on my face was easily visible and also on my mother’s face because that was probably the first time she saw that some friends had actually came at midnight on my birthday (like my brother’s friends had been doing from the past 7-10 years). The day went good and came the 20^th birthday.

I already had a very good doubt that something special was being planned for me! Slowly and steadily 1^st August arrived. I had no clue, it was recess time and I was in gulping down payal puff and just then Anish messaged me up ,” Meet me in the canteen right now. Major goof ups in DDU Connect and we have a meeting right now.” The word DDU Connect and crisis, my face suddenly turned into fear and anger as to what has happened now after so much of hard work! I left everything took an auto and rushed to the college canteen. I was waiting in the canteen area and just the 9 members of the Editorial team appeared out of nowhere with a cake and my first reaction was, my jaws dropped and I was in tears because this was probably the 1^st time in my entire life that actually a surprise was planned for me. Slowly with this start, 1^st August was one day which I wanted it to pass so that 2^nd August would arrive and I would actually see what is in store for me. The clock struck 12 and the doorbell rang. I was expecting Saumya and the regular bunch of birthday friends to arrive and to my great surprise, my school friends were waiting at the door and I had no clue that even they had planned to make my birthday special. I was like okay if this is the start how many more surprises are still to come. Some 20 minutes later, the regular birthday group arrived and I was presented with the most amazing gift I will ever receive in my lifetime. It was a prototype of the newspaper that was more than a life to me. All the phone calls and messages and facebook wishes that I received were just more than overwhelming. These series of events just changed my perception. Within 2 years from just a single person wishing me at midnight, I had dozens of phone calls from people who were genuinely trying to wish me. Amazing!

Then came the 21^st birthday. Again, exams were on, out of all the closest friends I have, Saumya was sick, apart from Rohan everyone had their share of problems. On 1^st August,2013 the anticipation grew as to what the birthday would be like and just then I receive a phone call at 10 PM, that two of my best friends have just met with an accident. Again the same old thought re-appeared okay it is the unfortunate day again - my birthday. Phone calls started and just when the clock struck 12, the doorbell rang and I had Saumya, Rohan and Mukul waiting at the door. I had no expectations at all and the look on my face and my mom’s face while clicking the photographs told the whole story as to how overwhelmed we were! Even though I had exams the next day, the moment I started walking in my college path, I had people wishing me. Once the exams got over, we again had the whole special Connect team and a few friends standing beside me. The look in their eyes told the whole story, they were the ones who wanted to make my birthday so very special. Some of them wrote so touchy messages, some did change their display pictures just for my birthday, some wrote so awesome facebook statuses. These things might look ordinary but these are the things which makes you feel special. We did nothing new, just the cake cutting and cake splashing stuff, but the joy in the eyes of people when they wished me was something which is simply not expressible.

When I analyzed these 3 birthdays, one thing was common in neither of my birthdays I went out for lunch or dinner nor did something extravagant. But what these 3 birthdays in DDU has done is they have changed my perception of birthday once for an all. I again feel special on my birthday which I used to feel like when I was 5 year old kid. This is when you understand the true value that what does celebrating a birthday mean! Just wishing a person from the bottom of your heart on his birthday can make wonders. If you have survived until here, all I want to say is birthday is not special but the people around you are the ones who will always make it special for you. These 4 birthdays in my college life has literally given me a bucket of memories which I shall never forget because I feel lucky to have them.

With Love and Regards,

Purvil Kamdar