Jul 11, 2007

the hullabaloo in the train

This is one of the experiences which will always remain in my mind...but this one's different coz this is remembered not in the general "oh what days they were? lovely times ...hope they come back"....but this one's different... this comes into the category...” oh! I had enough experience the first time I had it...I never want another experience like that...” I was really dumbfounded to find people act in such a manner as I will put it down for u all....but as I was experiencing the situations, I felt i had to write it down. So here fellas...here starts the experience.
The day started in a normal manner. I woke up around 11 in the morning as it was a Sunday and the previous night I stayed up till about four in the morning with my cousins’ madhuri and kanthi. Staying up till four has become normal for us as we had holidays. We stay up and do what we feel like. Doing c or just talking and commenting...the actual day starts for us around 10 at night and continues till 4. That is the time which we are following now....I know it’s an unearthly hour....but u will quite enjoy it if u were with the three of us. As soon as I wake up, I still have the remains of laziness all around me and my heart always wants me to get back into bed. This day was no different but I dragged myself out of bed telling that the time is already 11 and that I was an idiot to be sleeping till such an odd time.
After I woke up, I saw the "vote for taj mahal" on the TV. I took that issue seriously and voted as many times as possible. Then Bhagawan mavayya gave me an idea that I create id in names of all the people I knew and send votes from those ids. I liked it and sat down at once on a computer and started doing what taavu said. It was fun coz I was creating ids in a very funny manner and making jokes out of it. I think in all I created about 10 ids or more, but I sat down doing this till about two in the afternoon. Then suddenly it occurred to me that I didn’t take bath. I panicked as I had to leave for the station in about two hours as I was going to Visakhapatnam with Gowri aunty that day by Godavari express. I rushed into the restroom, took a quick dip and came out. I had a light lunch at around three and wondering why I wasn’t feeling hungry. Then I came to the conclusion that may be the excitement of journey didn’t make me feel hungry. I love travelling esp. by train.
This train journey, I felt was somewhat special as I was travelling only with Gowri aunty. We both reminded each other that we both only will be travelling together and felt excited, but I didn’t know that this train journey was definitely going to be etched in my mind as it would be very eventful after we board the train (he he...didn’t expect). I packed my stuff here so that it won’t be a problem for anyone here...and packed the few things which I had to take for the journey. I was ready to leave by three thirty. Gowri aunty and me, both of us were ready.
Meanwhile Bhagawan mavayya started panicking and rushed us up to leave so that we both won’t be late, but we ended up one and half hour before the departure of the train. I bought myself a Jeffrey archer book coz recently I have been bitten by Jeffrey archer's craze. Aunty asked me to get her some magazines also....so I brought her couple of magazines. We even got us a supply of chips that would last us for some time, I like munching on something when I read books especially thriller books. We got onto train and were eagerly waiting for the train to depart. After waiting for an hour, the train started to move slowly. I felt relief at last coz I hate waiting (but most of the times i do that...what to do?? ...he he). As the train was leaving the station, I saw that there was heavy downpour in the city. It looked good. I don’t know why but rain makes me feel excited. It brings in a new life into my soul. I felt like a child and giggled all the time. We were slowly leaving the Nampalli station (the station in Hyderabad). I sat gazing out of the thick windows (thick coz we boarded the third ac compartments), rain striking the windows and joy in my heart.
There were few people in our coup who looked very boring type. I thought "oh god! How will this journey be?? Is it going to be boring??” then few more people came and started chatting with the people who were there in our coup. I happened to overhear that they were talking about retired judges and judges.... to be appointed..... So I thought that they were people who were associated to courts, lawyers or something like that. After sometime, we approached the secunderabad station. People started pouring in and out. Gowri aunty went out as her relatives where there in secunderabad station...so that she could meet them. I was left alone; suddenly two children came into our coup and sat down.
I love kids. But on seeing these two children I didn’t get the love which generally sprouts in my heart as soon as I see kids; but I thought the journey would be livened up, now that kids are there in our coup. The kids came in and started taking their shoes out. As soon as they took out their shoes, the air suddenly smelled a disgusted smell. I started coughing as i could not take in that smell. Accompanying the children came their father. He was a man who was heavily built. He had very less hair on his head. He looked funny to me as his face was oval and his head reminded me of an egg. (Sorry I seem to be rude....I know we shouldn’t laugh at people but couldn’t help it...u would know it if u also had seen that person yourself). The children started fighting among themselves (oh god!). The younger one started kicking the elder one. The younger girl looked cute but her face was in tears. The elder girl looked chubby but somehow i didn’t find her cute. I felt that her eyes and cheeks were bulging out.
Suddenly a lady rushed into and sat down on the berth beside the children. I supposed that she might be the mother of the children and she turned out to be. Gowri aunty came and i felt relieved. An old lady also got into our coup. She was accompanied by her grandson (guessed it). The grandson looked as if he is imported from America (NRI). He was settling the luggage of the old lady. The old lady started complaining about the railway system in India. So i guessed that she might also be from foreign and to be more precise US. I felt the anger which I have always felt towards NRIs who often complain about India and its system; they forget that they have also lived in this land before they went to US. (Anyways this is a separate topic, which i will surely blog some day).
The mother of the children came and started taking out the things out of her baggage. And she dumped few things on the berth. The elder girl, Maanasi (i found out as her dad was calling her that...nice name na?) asked her mom to change her jeans as they got wet. her mom responded in a very raucous voice that she was searching for another jean for her to put on when she removes the one she is wearing. The girl became silent and looked in our direction. Seeing these people I felt uncomfortable. Probably because i am used to privacy or that these people were in such a hullabaloo fashion. The younger one, Nandini started crying again. I didn’t understand why she was crying. The father said to his wife in Hindi thinking that we might not understand Hindi. I tried reading my Jeffrey archer book in all this confusion so that I can divert my mind. Unexpectedly, the couple started arguing. Oh god!! what is happening?? Aunty and me, we looked into each other's eyes. We both were feeling very much out of the world. After a small heated discussion the couple settled on something. (phew!!).
Suddenly, the mother started unbuttoning the jeans of the elder girl (I calculated that she might be studying third or something around that). The girl looked at me and whispered something in her mom's ears. I wondered whether she was feeling shy in my presence and her mother later confirmed that my thoughts were correct. The mother asked me to go to the other side so that she could change her daughter's dress. I left and came back after few minutes. Gowri aunty saw my face and started laughing. (what to do?? we were in such a situation. phoooo!!!). The younger girl started crying as she didn’t get to do the same thing as her elder sister. (oh god! kids...they are so stupid at times!!). The dad started consoling her and asked the mom to change for the younger one also. Mom looked at her younger daughter in a very sarcastic manner which made the young girl cry again (in a fresh way.....oooohhhh!!!). At last the tantrum of the girl stopped as she was also changed into a new dress by her mother.
After the dressing was over, the children settled. The mother pounced on the food. The children were also given food packets, they ate what they could and the rest was gobbled by the parents. After that, the elder girl was made to go to the topmost berth. Seeing her sister go, the younger one also wanted to go (nothing wrong....younger kids always try to imitate what their elder sisters do....even I did so when I was small). Without bothering about the kids, the mother went to sleep. When she was sleeping, she reminded me of a character from Ramayana, soorpanakha (the rakshasi). (sorry to be rude, but couldn’t help thinking in that way...). The younger one started crying again, I just didn’t get the point why she keeps crying. it seems as if she has a whole tanker inside her especially for her crying sake... (he he!! tried to sound funny...but i think it didn’t..). The elder girl asked her parents to get her down as she was feeling frightened on the top berth, but the parents did heed her at all. She cried out of fear, but they didnt care at all and instead shouted on her. I felt bad for the girl, poor girl. How can the parents be so stupid?? Cant they see that the girl is afraid and they should help her out instead of scolding her?? Then i thought parenting is really an art and understood why so many books are published as guides for parenting.
I got back to my book. The book was quite interesting. Many people started coming to our coup. These people were that elder people's friends. These all were Government employees. All of them assembled here for their dinner. Aunty and I thought that we could have our dinner after all of them get dispersed. Seeing so many people, I thought this was the most eventful train journey I ever had. After those people completed their dinner, they started talking about lands, their costs, etc. Aunty told me that they were real estate consultants. (oh!! quite interesting). Hearing their talks, the old lady sat up and asked them whether she could also participate in their conversation or whether she could hear their conversations. (it sounded funny...anyone can listen to their conversation even without asking coz they were speaking so loudly...he he). She told she was a retired English lecturer in Andhra university and that she was now living in US (which confirmed my theory about her...after all...its me!!!!). Aunty and I thought that’s it time to have dinner, and let’s have it though they didn’t disperse. We finished it very fast. The old lady asked me my berth which was a lower berth in exchange for her upper side berth. I gave it to her immediately without thinking (have to be generous na?!! she was an old lady ...).
After dinner, I climbed up the upper berth and started peacefully reading the book. It was quite interesting. I read it until I felt sleepy. I put my book down and was about to fall asleep. I was thinking that i never had such a ride in my life with so many types of people and I thought that it was over when the train stopped at some station, and few people entered into the bogie making so much noise. (ohh! god!! don’t people have the minimum common sense that at such a late hour ...people will be sleeping). Anyways, the people came in and started talking loudly to their friends who were my co-passengers. They left the train as the train started to leave that station. That’s the day’s events in short for u all.
To conclude with, I learnt lots of lessons through this experience of mine. After this incident, i recollected a statement which i saw in my friend's profile "Different people...Different attitudes". Those parents taught me the importance of attitude, love. I recollected how Bhagawan mavayya was so loving and how he took good care of children. "LOVE IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN LIFE". That’s what I realised. You should be very loving, never lose patience and I was thankful to god that I had such great parents. "I realised, though I already knew, that I have lovely parents." (some faults may be there; after all they are also humans.) and to be decent is also quite important. I am decent, I know that but still mentioning that point again coz that’s the most important thing of this post. I think I am getting quite "lectury" now. So ending this post here. Thought would share this with you all.....

3 comments:

Ignoramus Maximus said...

helloooo funny ga undi.. inkaa interesting posts cheyyi.. keep rockin.

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Unknown said...

Nice way of writing bunny!!! Keep up the good work and keep writing u will improve.........