Please Help Me !

Friday, 15th, June 2007

"PLEASE HELP ME !", said a voice behind me. I looked around and saw a man, must be in his early 20s, handing out a little package. He said it was a wallet and he was selling it. I ignored him and walked into the ATM.

[The Backdrop:
It was a Friday evening and I was on my way from office to a friend's place. A lot of uncertainity on whether we would make it to Shivaji (first day of release) tonight. At last we (Sanju, Rajiv, Selvam, Candy and me) managed to get some tickets . I parked my bike outside the Anna Nagar ICICI ATM hoping to withdraw some cash for the movie. ]

I walked out of the ATM, the wait in the queue relaxed me a bit, after the hectic tension-prone journey amidst the peak traffic. I came out to find the same guy trying to sell that wallet to other prospects. I called him and asked "How much for it ? "Rs. 90" he said. In my quest to bargain I asked "Would you give me two for Rs.150 ?". His reply "No sir, this is the last piece I have, and to be honest I'll just make Rs.10 if I sell it to you for Rs.90". I gestured to see the wallet to check its quality, and felt it was a good bargain. So paid him the money and got my wallet. I had actually seen this guy a few weeks back in the same area trying to sell wallets to people coming out of a restaurant. There was an honest appeal in his sales call that prompted me to ask him his name. "Senthil" he said. Seeing his communication abilities, I'm sure he could have got into a better job. And I asked him "So why did you take up selling wallets?". His reply, "He's preparing for UPSC exams and this was a part-time evening activity to get him going". I appreciated it and wished him a best future.

Then I took off, feeling content and like an angel after HELPing a young man by making his last deal of the day. There was something terribly wrong about my bike now, looked down, and .... oh GOD, it was a flat tyre !

I looked around and said "PLEASE HELP ME !"

A Train Journey

Hi... it's me again with a brand new blog. I always thought my blogs would be about my excursions to interesting places. Well, here's a blog on a journey of a different kind. Hope you guys enjoy this one.

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Tuesday, May 2, 2006

KINDNESS UNLIMITED: This is a small incident that happened in the summer of 2004, something that had an impact on my actions till today atleast. I have always been wanting to write about this one and here it comes.

I was returning to Chennai from Kottayam (a small town in Kerala) after attending my best friends, Ranjay and Shema's wedding. It was a 14 hour train journey starting early evening from Kottayam, so I had to figure out means to kill time. Worst was, I didn't have any planned source of music or reading. I saw an Indian edition of Reader's Digest in the hands of a lady next to my berth, and since she was not reading it, requested for it and she didn't hesitate. There were some interesting articles but what interested me most was an article on "Kindness Unlimited" movement initiated by Mr. Kalbag - a Mumbai wala.

The article quoted a lot of examples of kindness towards fellow humans, kindness towards other creatures, and on how the movement kickstarted in India because of Mr. Kalbag's thoughts and initiatives. This article somehow interested me and I jotted down the URL's and related email ids. However, it was not long before I witnessed a real account of what Kindness (or selflessness to be accurate) meant.

It was getting late in the night, must have been around 10 and most of them around my berth sleeping, not to mention the snores. I did notice movement of a few women in their mid-twenties in the subsequent slots (any guys' travel fantasy ). There was one particular woman among them who did not seem to belong to any of the berths, just strolling along the compartment like any non-reserved traveller would . Seeing me awake she came to me and requested if she could sit in my place till I was awake. "Of course" was my reply, a little hostility in my tone.

Further conversations revealed that she was travelling to Chennai with her other friends to take up an entrance test to pursue a nursing course. I suddenly popped up the question, "How did you think you could manage to complete a 14 hour night journey without a reserved ticket?" for which her reply surprised me. She said that she had a reserved ticket and pointed her finger at a berth occupied by a lady and baby barely a few months old. This girl told me that she saw the mother and baby sleeping on the train floor since they did not have reserved tickets and she sacrificed her berth and consequently her nights' sleep. On asking how she would manage the entire night, she gave an immediate modest reply "I am a young girl and strong enough to stay one night with no sleep". This comment of hers made me feel very small in front of her. I wanted to accompany this girl in her sleepless venture , but she insisted that I catch some sleep and that she will manage with her friends, she was young and strong after all ! She rejected my request with a smile and went ahead to where her other friends were.

I still remained seated, staring straight into the night trying to overcome this hair raising experience...

I had just witnessed KINDNESS UNLIMITED ...

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(p.s. for those interested in this movement, do visit http://kindnessunlimited.tripod.com/)

Spinning Around

I wanna travel to the end of the world,
Not knowing where to begin,
Not knowing where to end.

I wanna go for the search of my soul
In the High Land, Far Skies or Deepest Hole
And all I can see is a mask of Staring Souls
Hiding beneath blue eyes, skin and bones
Each in its own quest longing for more.

I travel way too far and way too deep
Passing Stones and Wind out there to beat
And all I know is I keep spinning around
Trying to stand my very own ground
And then I say to myself, “May Be…
… I should travel to the end of the world”

Please Help Me !

Friday, 15th, June 2007

"PLEASE HELP ME !", said a voice behind me. I looked around and saw a man, must be in his early 20s, handing out a little package. He said it was a wallet and he was selling it. I ignored him and walked into the ATM.

[The Backdrop:

It was a Friday evening and I was on my way from office to a friend's place. A lot of uncertainity on whether we would make it to Shivaji (first day of a Rajinikanth movie release) tonight. At last we (Sanju, Rajiv, Selvam, Candy and me) managed to get some tickets . I parked my bike outside the Anna Nagar ICICI ATM hoping to withdraw some cash for the movie. ]


I walked out of the ATM, the wait in the queue relaxed me a bit, after the hectic tension-prone journey amidst the peak traffic. I came out to find the same guy trying to sell that wallet to other prospects. I called him and asked "How much for it ? "Rs. 90" he said. In my quest to bargain I asked "Would you give me two for Rs.150 ?". His reply "No sir, this is the last piece I have, and to be honest I'll just make Rs.10 if I sell it to you for Rs.90". I gestured to see the wallet to check its quality, and felt it was a good bargain. So paid him the money and got my wallet. I had actually seen this guy a few weeks back in the same area trying to sell wallets to people coming out of a restaurant. There was an honest appeal in his sales call that prompted me to ask him his name. "Senthil" he said. Seeing his communication abilities, I'm sure he could have got into a better job. And I asked him "So why did you take up selling wallets?". His reply, "He's preparing for UPSC exams and this was a part-time evening activity to get him going". I appreciated it and wished him a best future.

Then I took off, feeling content and like an angel after HELPing a young man by making his last deal of the day. There was something terribly wrong about my bike now, looked down, and .... oh GOD, it was a flat tyre !

I looked around "PLEASE HELP ME !"

ODE TO A LADY

The day we met with a gang of friends
Did not guess, you'd mean so much,
The traffic stopper, juice beheld,
Our first date, a heart melted

The running on stairs, the beach shone on,
Movie that lasted, upset for a moment
You drew me ever, nearer to my best
A food for thought, that upset you more

Time passed on, distance arose
Our minds changed, our feelings broke
I was here, and you were there,
Never far and never near
An unfolded dream, A shattered glass
A moment in time, that'll ever last

No best thing lasts forever
A void made, bee out of an amber
You're the bee, the stingless one
Nothing Lost, nothing won
Hats off to you, my great friend.
Hope we're this way, till the END.

Racism hits me