Friday, December 28, 2007

SANS THE BED OF ROSES...



A bed of roses spread on the green earth- the blue sky embellised with the jewels of the night and a soft breeze humming my favorite tune- gently, I fall asleep and smiling to myself as I do so; yet aware of the new dawn that lies ahead of me: a dawn that would take me away from all the luxuries that I had been enjoying so lavishly. And yet, I wanted to see this dawn; wanted it to come soon and deprive me of my luxuries,wanted to so desparately that my bed of roses failed to put me into the instant sleep as it usually does!
But why would I want it to come? Why would anyone ever want to deprive oneself of all the luxuries of life? The reason was simple. I wanted to see myself without my privileges. I wanted to see, how I would be if I weren't allowed what I had been enjoying in the past. Wanted to be like some my friends in my college- who were like me before they faced the "dawn"; but were full of praises for it, which was so tempting that I wanted to try it out as soon as possible and I was ready to pay the price!
As it came near, my curiosity was enroused. I was excited, nervous but happy all at once. But soon, I reached my new world- sans the bed of roses, sans the green earth and blue sky; but a world entrapped inside the pale blue walls that starts with a door of cheap wood without even a proper lock and ended with a rusted nail on the other side of that tiny room. All that the room could hold were three beds, placed so close to each other and yet there was no space to walk inside that room. An open shelf to "guard" my precious possessions- two windows that allowed the light from outside even during night time; a light without light and a fan with a broken regulator!
I was on my own. And this was what I had ever wanted.And if a broken regulator and some broken cot was the price that I was asked to pay for it- I was ready to pay it! But was I happy? Ofcourse yes! But this was a totally different kind of happiness. A happiness that came from finding myself in a situation where I had never been placed before and finding myself coping up with it. May be at a small level, but I was feeling as happy as a toddler as he tries and succeeds in taking his first step without his mother. I was as happy as a plant that tastes the first rain of the year. And as happy as a starving dog who gets his first piece of bone!
It was nearly two weeks since I had changed my world.Did I miss my world? Yes. So I hated my new world? Ofcourse not! But yes, I would surely like to go back to where I came from. But will I miss this world? Well, yes and no. Yes, for it taught me so many things that I had no chance of learning in my world- like to wash my clothes, adjust to a bad food, compromise with the not-so-good people around me, manage my time to suit my schedulde, and not to let go Mr. Gandhi unless he wanted to leave me. No, simply because, it wasn't my world, and I was very happy with mine that I do not need this one- not that I would forget my lessons; for they were chapters on survival which were vital- not just for me, but for everyone.
And so I am back into my world- my home; am happy and full of memories of my room, my bed, my account book and my life, at the hostel!

44 comments:

Indrajit said...

beauty of a post...;-)
wow......
Hope u enjoy ur new life...

Matangi Mawley said...

@indr..
thnk u!

Anonymous said...

Gostei muito desse post e seu blog é muito interessante, vou passar por aqui sempre =) Depois dá uma passada lá no meu site, que é sobre o CresceNet, espero que goste. O endereço dele é http://www.provedorcrescenet.com . Um abraço.

Matangi Mawley said...

@crescenet..

Muito obrigado! :)

Priya said...

Good one and going back where we want is always good.

Wishing you a very Happy New Year.

Matangi Mawley said...

@priya..

thnk u!
and a very new year to u too.. :)

Himanshu said...

well written girl! It did bring back memories of the day when i left my bed of roses when I moved to Bangalore. As I am sure you will soon discover, its more than just about the roses, this new life. I had written a poem on it titled "Distances".

You just made me very nostalgic I guess.

Cheers, and take care!

HM

Matangi Mawley said...

@hdm..
thnk u!

Harish Suryanarayana said...

Was hostel life really that bad an experience to be a different and deprived world ? Sheesh ! Good that you are back home and great that you look at it as a learning experience.

Happy New Year !

Matangi Mawley said...

@harish..
:) thnk u!

Harish Suryanarayana said...

Oh Hello ! That was fast! Well, it is interesting that the only mode of communication here is a comments box. I really like your profile picture. I have seen it in other places too. What is it ?

Matangi Mawley said...

@harish..
thnk u was for u'r happy new yr..
i agree with u!

it s a pencil sketch.. found it in smewhere.. dont remember where..

Harish Suryanarayana said...

Y'know , this is so like some movie.. New Year eve and two random people chatting on a blog :) . Well, some artist has apparently struck a chord here. Have fun at home :) . As luck goes, I am home too !

Matangi Mawley said...

:).. indeed..

happy new yr then!

Unknown said...

that was a good post! :) u always manage something like that dont u??! well.. i can only say what u say often abt- "whn 1 is clever.." remember? happy new year!

Matangi Mawley said...

@suyash..

ofcourse i remember! :)
thnk u.. and happy new yr to u too.. :)

Unknown said...

wow! u in a hostel.. :) i would ve loved to see u doing all those jobs.. esp. washing clothes!! :)
ne way.. happy new yr!
n gr8 post!

Matangi Mawley said...

@rewa..

thnk u!

Unknown said...

bautifully written!

Matangi Mawley said...

@anu..

thnk u! :)

Compassion Unlimitted said...

Hi Matangi
a first timer here..a lovely blog and the post..happy i came here

Wish you a very happy new year
TC
CU

Zahid said...

Hmm...When new years approaching.... i find you with this post...The memorable moments are found without bed fo roses. So....

nice post !!!
cheers ~!!!
happy new year !!!

Matangi Mawley said...

@compassion.. Thank u!

Matangi Mawley said...

@zahid.. Thank u! And happy new year.. :-)

Anonymous said...

hi..this is nikhil here.. U have a beautiful blog out here.. And u r post is just fab! Good work gal.. :-)

Unknown said...

awesome post dude or dudette whateva it is...i really liked the part about learning ourselves ,life really is a different kind of happiness sans the bed of roses...

rauf said...

oh no its bed of roses everywhere Matangs, its just slight shift in attitude, after all the change is your choice too. Little adjustments make a lot of difference. Unfortunately in our society, only women ave to make adjustments, which is grossly unfair.

Its been a while Matangs, how you've been ?
i am traveling and traveling, and traveling, hardly at home. Going again tomorow.
Hope you are fine
Happy Pongal.

Matangi Mawley said...

@nikhil..
thnk u!

Matangi Mawley said...

@feardbond..

thnk u!

Matangi Mawley said...

@rauf..
right u r! :)
i m travelling too.. no time to stay at 1 place 4 a long time.. rest.. all fine! but my travels yield me good posts! :)
thnk u neway..

Anamika said...

long time i came here..and happy to find such a lovely post....
:)
belated happy new year too

Matangi Mawley said...

@vrinda..
thnk u!

Anonymous said...

Hiiii!!
Glad to know that the life away from ur bed of roses,although 'a deprived world' at times,has given u a bed of experiences too..
i hve been in the hostel for sometime now, and I guess I kinda love this life too!!!
TC!!!!
Keep posting!!!!

Matangi Mawley said...

@shammu..

:) welcome.. thnk u!

Si_Lee said...

You must have often heard people say " my fav color is black...i dont like red ..or i love blue but hate green..or i don like grey but i love white and pink .." and so on..but have you ever wondered to stop and think why no one says .. "i dont find the rainbow beautiful"... the beauty of life lies in the fact that it's a rainbow, a kaleidoscope an assortment of all colors ..u may like some or dislike some but the fact is all colors exist in all phases of life...well written...very well written..i cud relate to it straight away

Matangi Mawley said...

@descrying the shadows..
thnk u!

Brand H said...

hi..it was great readin tis particular post..its not so easy to impress ppl by comin out wit wats in ur mind..u ve done it..very entertainin..keep postin..:)

Matangi Mawley said...

@brand..

thnk u!

Unknown said...

finally u ve joined the league??
gr8 post!
superb!

Matangi Mawley said...

@suryash..
thnk u buddy.. i ve indeed... :)

Unknown said...

nice written!

Matangi Mawley said...

@prashant..

thnk u!

ishqia said...

home is always a home.. nice

Matangi Mawley said...

@ishqia..

true yaar! :)