It is not ‘cos of me...

I woke up in the morning having the same thought as every other day. I’m sure mom will be happy that I remembered God after I woke up. But what she’ll never get to know was that her son wasn’t thanking God, instead mumbling, “Oh God! Another day in office”! Rarely do I remember, it is not ‘cos of me that I am awake and alive to see all the beautiful things God has kept in store for me...

I look at my side and see my wife and my little baby either sleeping away to glory or crying out loud as if the sky is going to fall on him. I say the usual good morning to my beloved and kiss the child trying not to wake him up lest he’ll start his earth shattering cry which will derail all my plans for the day. Rarely do I remember, it is not ‘cos of me that I’ve two of the most beautiful creations by God right beside me and being loved by them which gifts me the all important feeling of being wanted by someone in this world...

I lie on my bed facing the roof of the bedroom in our well furnished apartment concerned about the possible increase in the rent a few months down the line. A bunch of calculations run through my mind on how to plan for the extra money or manage the hassle of shifting the place yet another time! Rarely do I remember, it is not ‘cos of me that I have a roof above my head to where He had sent the guardian angels to protect me and my family...

I get ready in a jiffy trying to make up for the lost time while I was making up my mind to apply for a leave or not for the day. I part the curtains to take a look at the queuing cars on the road opposite from my balcony and curse the traffic that builds up right from the morning. Rarely do I remember, it is not ‘cos of me that I have a job in hand and a car to travel in...

I hit the roads of this Arab nation with its numerous signals and the beeline of vehicles to finally end up at office praying hard to get an empty parking all the while listening to the RJs trying to lift my spirit in the morning. Rarely do I remember, it is not ‘cos of me that there was no accident en route and I had enough money to buy a parking card...

I face the usual music in office from my manager about deliverables and deadlines. Knowing the importance of these I still get myself lost among the news and views of people from across the world for a good majority of things which does not even remotely concern me. Rarely do I remember, it is not ‘cos of me that I have been given a tremendous opportunity to learn something new and an equally competent person to guide me to achieve my goals...

I open my flask with the fruit oats I made in the morning and dunk it along with all my vengeance to the world. The almonds, walnuts and raisins tickle my taste buds to eventually end up deep down in my bowels. I have my breakfast in the most mechanical way while skimming through the papers carrying scores of horrible news for the day. Rarely do I remember, it is not ‘cos of me that I have something to eat and more importantly I can eat...

I look at my watch trying to scare the needles to run faster so that I can escape myself from the laborious hills of never ending tasks. Rarely do I remember, it is not ‘cos of me that these same tasks given to me are the ones that metamorphose into a good looking number at the end of the month that brings a smile to my face and help realise my dreams...

All of these and a hundred more other complaints that I raise with each passing day build itself a complex logic in my mind about how difficult life is. Rarely do I remember, it is not ‘cos of me that the countless worries in the past have been taken care by Him and is no more a matter of concern the way it was when they all started...

I look upon Thee with tearful eyes for being selectively ignorant of the blessings I receive every day. I do remember now my Lord that You have placed me in Your palm and that alone takes away all my concerns! I thank Thee for this life!

Disliking Like!

I remember Peter, a friend of mine ridiculing me big time when I finally joined Facebook after quite a long resistance to join the bandwagon. I’d been blindly loyal to Orkut and was totally not ready to accept the fact that the world was migrating to FB! Nevertheless, it had to happen and I was pretty happy when it did.

Facebook turned out to be much better in terms of usability and features and not long after I moved to FB I had to relocate physically to Middle East where Orkut anyways was banned. Status updates, photo uploads and a bunch of activities followed. Among all these there is one specific feature I find totally disturbing! The ‘Like’ feature of FB.

I’ve to admit I had been a user of this feature to express my interest for some of the pictures or videos posted by friends or otherwise. I’ve been receiving a few ‘likes’ as well for the photos or status messages I post once a while. I do remember a few months back when I first told my sweetheart I wish there was an option to disable the ‘like’ feature in FB. It was beginning to annoy me since every time I upload a picture or post a message there was a flurry of activity in my account. 9/10 of these will be a ‘like’ by someone among my contacts.

The futility of this activity is what makes me think what exactly is the point? I really wonder if the person who ‘likes’ something really mean it. If they do, why not spent an extra few seconds and say that instead of being a lethargic victim to the technology marathon?! It seems to me more like a routine job being done rather than expressing an earnest opinion.

There have also been instances when the pop ups for ‘like’ gets hurled at you as if it was your mistake to post that status or upload that picture! It felt more like being fired at by a machine gun. I even wonder if these people have devised some sort of an algorithm to generate the likes as soon as an activity appears!

Maybe I’m old fashioned, maybe this is what I am, but I love it when people make an effort to tell you what they liked about something, rather than finish the job because you’ve an option there to do so by the slightest movement of the cursor!

Bottom Line: Communicate; do not constrain!

The Living Legacy

Year 2003. The global software industry showed signs of post recession awakening after the dreadful World Trade Centre attack and the subsequent impact on the outsourcing businesses in general. We were stepping into our final year of Computer Application Masters course. The decisive year when we need to find a placement for ourselves so that we can contribute to the numerous bunch of brains that make this industry work.

This was the same year we had to do a project for couple of months at any of the IT companies and submit a report at the college. The need was to work on a live project so as to maximize our experience with the wonderful world of programming! I for one was not very keen from the beginning since I had strongly convinced my mind that programming is not my cup of tea. Nevertheless certain inevitabilities of life can’t be postponed forever!

The good thing about getting a project at Webstorm IT, a small time software development firm in Bangalore, was the comfortable work atmosphere offered. Add to this the fact that I’d my dearest cousin sister along with me made things all the more interesting. We were joined by three more souls in this journey towards finding our destiny!

Rajitha, the simple to the core but something much more girl, from the cultural capital of Kerala, Thrissur, was the other feminine presence among the group. The spoken words were far and few initially but she proved to be a chatter box down the line. There were many more surprises in store about her which we all discovered together.

Dennis, was nothing like a menace for sure! A harmless character but mostly lost in his wonderland perhaps planning for how to provide the algorithms a fitting place to be and flourish. He had a pair of legs that were destined to be pulled to the maximum during the days ahead.

Tina, my sweet sister was a true embodiment of free spirit. I adored her trademark bubbly attitude and the genuine care she showered on me which could well be scooped out and showcased as to how a sister should be!

Jomy, the mighty one! If there is one word which can describe him, nothing other than this suits better: Life! That’s what he was. Full of life all the while. Having lived his life as a cross country race he was the best spoken and the biggest brat, both at the same time. Little did we know that by the end of the project he’ll turn out to be the one who will be the closest to our hearts.

Jomy was the brightest among the whole bunch who had an appetite for making things work. Be it the syntax of the programs he coded or the weekend outing plans he arranged, he had it in him. A natural organizer and a tactful leader. He was born to win. Many a times I’ve stood at awe at his ability to handle a situation. His charisma definitely had a lot to do with making people listen to him. He being a natural charmer, there was no two ways about his ability to make the fairer sex attracted to him. I could only watch him with an impatient jealousy and keep reminding me that life’s not always fair...

He had this peculiar habit of munching something while programming. We being the lesser mortals who kept getting lost in the maze of the ‘ifs’ and ‘elses’ of the weird world of coding had only one sensible thing to do. Ensure the supply chain of goodies never got choked. The programming genius in him was kept awake with the constant flow of snacks delivered at his desk.

During one of these days we got to know about the culinary expertise of the lady from Thrissur. The most natural thing followed. Jomy officially appointed her as the Master Chef of our project! While he cracked his brains to bring the binary numbers under his spell, she did the same with the spices and masalas of the world. She proved herself to be an excellent cook and the realization of the fact that we’ve a full time chef with us made us really happy, especially Jomy who was a connoisseur of excellence!

Time flew by and we all parted ways as life had to move on. We all presented the fruits of our labour to our respective colleges and completed the Post Graduation in flying colours. While I pursued my next Masters in Management, Jomy got an offer at Webstorm itself which he accepted and Dennis started with another firm. Tina got married in between and flew to the States. So did Rajitha a few months later, the wedding which Jomy and I attended and relived our memories of the good old days.

Being in Bangalore helped us being in touch though as years went by the frequency came down. We did make occasional phone calls and once a while met as well. I got busy with my further studies and the job that followed. After a few years I got married too. Priorities changed and people who used to be in the frequent contacts list got replaced with other names.

As was decided by the good God, I was meant to get the shocker of my life one day while preparing for our dinner at Dubai where to which I’d moved along with my family! Tina forwarded me a mail from Rajitha saying Jomy was admitted in Vellore hospital for cancer treatment and was in the secondary stage! A whole lot of pictures flashed by in my mind and the next thing I knew was tears rolling down my cheeks and I cried my heart out on my beloved’s shoulders. I couldn’t accept the fact that, the guy I knew as the one who loved to live life to the fullest is now battling for that. I prayed to God not to call him back so soon. He had not even started his life to say the least.

A month of prayers and thoughts passed by and another phone call from Tina made me realize that how much ever you plan, His will, will be done! He may not be seen anymore, but I feel his presence everyday when I see people complain about little things. My mind speaks to me that I once knew a guy who will fold his hands and face the issues with a steely determination that will melt away even the most gruesome of challenges that ever came up!

Your legacy lives on my dear friend...