* I rate, this post, as my best, till date.
*Foreword: Not a funny post. May represent my narrow/shallow mindset. Advertising to close friends only; unless someone accidentally visits here!
1.2 billion people... 28 different states... innumerable religions... how many of 'em you think know the name of the countries, that exist? Vietnam? Indonesia? Ireland? Cyprus, ever heard of it? But there's a country which the entire population would know... could relate with... people would dream of, just being there one day... which is synonymous to 'phoren'... whose people are called as "foreigners"... popularly known as the land of "Amricaa..."!
So, this is a story of one such fellow, who felt that way...
A middle class boy, studying in a school, dreamed to earn Rs. 1000 per day, and calculated all the riches in the world he could get, with that money! He wondered, until his college days, why people would travel into an auto, or car, for that matter, when bus/train was comparatively so cheap? He wondered, why people bought Air Conditioners, when fan is enough to cool down? He even looked up the word 'passport' in Oxfords, dreamed of sitting onto an aeroplane one day... yes, that was his dream! And he dreamed big, well, at least he thought so!
That is how life is! If you are small, your dreams are small too! If you are big, you've got big plans in life.
With those dreams, the boy gets into the college - Science Stream, as he liked Science more than Economics ... and that too in a college, when he could 've got better colleges... well, again, he dreamed of being there! Whilst in 11th Std, he sees his dear friend using a computer, clicking and navigating through the folders so quickly, that he starts believing his friend, is a true genius! And in 12th Std, he starts by "ASDFGF ;LKJHJ" at a friends place.He chooses Computer Engineering, just because he doesn't possess a computer! Finally, finds a computer lab to hang on in his Engineering days, starting his day with - #include
The frightened, low self-esteemed guy, changes to a more confident person, the next year... reaches late, but is never disallowed in... does not write assignments but submits them first... lets say, his luck gets him through! Last year arrives, and he gets a campus recruitment at *at*i (well, ITians will surely decode it), and thinks that his dream is fulfilled, with Rs. 1.8l p.a. As he is asked to join late, within a gap of 3 months... gets a few offers, and finally selects the company - Nirvana (an imaginary name, which I just love), for the simple reason, that he might get to finally conquer his quest of an airplane travel, doesn't mind if he flies to somewhere within India, but deep inside, he wishes, again he dreams, that he lands in phoren... in Amricaa!
Within a few months, he finally steps up on an international plane... surprisingly looks at people around, on what to do, how to behave, buckles up this seat belt, and takes off! Phew, only if it could be a country, which his people could tell!!
3 years, 3months and 19days later... a book is wide opened in front of the reader, but his mind is somewhere else, his eyes calm and fearless, he rests on a bench, waiting; thinking about the past... his childhood days, his dreams then... of how he looked in his school days... about, the fun he had in the farewell party... the butterflies in his stomach, on the first day of his college... the canteen's masala-paav... the first day of workshop at his engineering college... his assignment of completing his assignments, to others... the fullstop at the last engineering paper... the joy, in his dad's eyes, when he got the job... first day at his office... the cubicle... the first Pseudo code that he wrote... the day finally he stepped on the plane... the first day, that he met the customer... the first production at the site... the first appreciation he got... the project trips that he planned... the opportunities that he got... the 7 countries that he visited... it was, indeed, a marvelous journey!
Today, things have changed, he is more confident... he has high aspirations... the wrongs are rights... he is more practical... he is a transformed man!
But deep, deep inside, he...err... I, still am the same little boy, that I once was... waiting impatiently, with my fingers crossed... am having goosebumps... am excited, after all, I am waiting for the Boeing 747... for my very first trip, to the magical land of Amricaa!
