I found an old photo album at home which had pictures from my school days. Photo albums have that special way of taking you down memory lane and making you super nostalgic. A photograph has the power to trap a memory which can be relived over and over again.
There was one particular photograph in that album which was taken during independence day during my junior school days. This was during a school function and we were to sing a patriotic song (I think it was kadam kadam badaye) .The teachers thought it would be a good idea if we were dressed as the national flag when we sang. So a bunch of us wore saffron kurtas , another bunch wore white and the last group of us wore green. We were also caked with makeup (One teacher took a particular interest in dabbing obscene amounts of rouge on our cheeks). We went up on stage , waving flags and sang the song with all our heart. The school clapped for us and we happily went back to the green room to change back into our school uniforms. Even though we were middle school kids and didn’t know much about the Army , given a chance we would all have signed up the very day to fight for our country. That day I decided that when I grew up , I would join the Army and fight for our country.
I found another photo , a photo taken during my middle school cricket coaching days (It was called ‘Cricket with Kirmani’ ). Rahul Dravid had come down to chat with us as a special guest and we were all waiting for him eagerly. He was wearing tracks and a T shirt when I first saw him. We flocked to him and started making the kind of conversation school children are known to make(Mostly about whether Boost better than Complan). I still remember him being an humble man answering all our questions. He gave us tips on cricket, being motivated and also told us to concentrate equally in studies. By the time he left , we were all in awe. I then thought , maybe I should become a cricketer when I grew up.
Another photo was during high school. It was the oath taking ceremony for school captains and house captains. It was my first stint of a leadership role. All the office bearers were beaming with pride and had a sense of purpose. Standing with the house flag in hand , I decided to become a politician.
Over a period of time I have wanted to be an engine driver, pilot , traffic policeman , entrepreneur, journalist and zookeeper. I am now working for a bank. Did I ever think this where I would land up? No. Will I ever think of becoming an engine driver again ? Maybe not.
Some of us have been lucky enough to have a dream and stick with it till it was realized. I have known people who have wanted to be pilots , beauty pageant winners and sportsmen from the age of five and they have managed to fulfill their dreams. But for the rest of us , things haven’t been smooth sailing. We have tripped , we have fallen and we have risen. Through the years , we never exactly give up on our dreams but rather our dreams changed with time. In this exercise of self-introspection I realized one thing ,given a choice , I would rather go over this cycle again. As they say , it is not the destination which matters , but rather the journey. I guess, it’s more fun not to know what the future has in store for you rather than knowing exactly what you are going to be doing for the rest of your lives.
Cheers
roughnotebook 