The Alchemist Or The Secret ? - 1

It was a nice afternoon, me discussing the ongoing project with my friend and eventually the discussions narowed down to his son, the one undergoing Computer Science engineering.

"What about him", I asked to my friend.

"I really do not know what he is up to, neither was I aware about this stream of education when I was in his era", was the reply from my friend.

"That's ok, but what is that making you worried about him or his career?", was my question to him.

"Frankly, I really do not know what is all about the new options in the career this generation has and I wish there was some one who could talk to me as well as my son explaining what it is actually when we are talking about the discipline he has chosen for his studies" - was my friend's saying!

"Well, I guess it must be you / your family asking your son to persue this stream of studies, knowing the fact that at the age of 17 your son may or may not be even knowing what he is going to land into", was my next comment. And that's where the whole story begins.

"Well, if you wish, I can have a word with him and share my experience with him, as I happen to spend almost 15+ years in IT industry", was all I could say. I was not really aware of the consequences of this saying at that time!

Not much waiting, once fine day I got a call from my friend, "Hey, can my son come to see you and get some insights about IT industry?"
"Yes, why now" is all I had to say, unaware about what was coming next to me, neverthe less with these young generation kids :)

And the D'day came, I was welcoming a couple of anxious kids, not known to each other, at my home. I tried to sooth them to my best, but seriously it was some work! After a few awkward moments and typical rituals of introducing to each other, my questions was "Ok, now that we know each other's names, what is that you expect from me?"

I am not really in a position to describe the next moments, as the kids happend to sit tight in their place, just missing of a seat belt, assuming a coaster ride of typical elderly dose of does and donts. That was the moment of truth and realization - these kids were just following the most happenning education stream, in a optimistic anticipation of making a good earning and eventually being so called well-settled adults....

Took me a while to decide about where to start the conversion. Of course, the need of the time was to make them comfortable that to feel that I am just another elder uncle who is ready with the loaded anti-vaccine shots treating them as vulnarable babies... I realized, though I was old enough by age and the tenure I have been engaged in IT industry, I had to bridge a huge gap, usually known as generation gap!

As clueless these kids as I was, all I had to do was to strike some conversation, so as usual terms I eneded with enquiring about college / schoo environment etc. Soon I was luckily able to corelate to my own college days, and that was that enlightning moment! I felt like Biddha. All it took for me was to ask about the pain areas related to college / extra classes these kids were going through and voila! I was soon very much a trust worthy old uncle :)

The journey is still on, and I wish to continue with what it started with 2 kids, grown up to 5 by now. I am thinking about what I thought that I would teach these kids, but eventually what I got to learn from them in the coming write-ups.

Till then, Hasta Manana...

E.O.L.

They say I am in extrovert. But frankly it means a lot to be introvert. Not everyone can be extrovert unless he/she's known what it means to be an introvert. It the inner power god has gifted to human kind to keep thinking about our roots, our tradition, culture and of course, none the less the culture. I truly believe the only differentiating ability of human race amongst other species is to think of others first. Of course rules are proven by exception, but for sure the term saint is definitely not prevail ant in any other species than human kind.

I had an unique opportunities to be spending 8 years of my life before I could understand what it means to live for others. When my journey began, I was representing any other animal species - revenge for revenge. A pawn a pawn. Then sooner or later I realized the famous proverb : an eye for an eye and soon the world would be blind. Believe me, this sounds real phony, but when it comes to knowing by heart and understanding the meaning, you are not far away from the way the great saints have been thinking. I still believe that the true power is not to have an eye for an eye, but to donate your eye so some other human being who's deprived of all the colors and beautiful scenes of this world gets a chance to admire the mother earth. This obviously holds true even when it comes to any relations. We as mortal humans end up spending our most of lives fighting over so called ego and made up concepts of self esteem. Do we ever take an audit of what benefit we cause to the entire human race due to this attitude? Is it always has to be jeasus Christ or mahatma Gandhi to highlight the futileness of this attitude? We as normal living species always worship such great saints, but have we ever wondered that what stops us from at least giving a try to just be able to practice a few learnings we have received from the holy bible, or quaran or Geeta?

A nice song from Michael Learns To Rock comes to my mind:

If all the people around the world
They had a mind like yours
We'd have no fighting and no wars
There would be lasting peace on earth

Kabir, Spice Girls, Society and Boyzone

Recently I had an opportunity to read some literature of Osho (explaining Kabir’s Doha), listen to some frequently listened songs and give little though towards the life in general. What’s interesting is somewhere all these things have something common to say – be yourself…

Kabir says to get away from society and start your own travel in an opposite direction which currently is acknowledged as the most suitable ones. Of course, you would want to do it only if you are having questions related to existentialism, or knowing your inner self. If this is not your piece of cake, you are at wrong shop ☺

Spice Girls, in their song “2 became 1”, say “Set your spirit free, it’s the only way to be”. Sounds a bit similar to what Kabir had to say, right? I am not sure if these girls were even aware about Kabir, Osho or for that sake spirituality… (I am not talking here about the spirit we usually consume from bottles☺) Another thing worth noticing is, now that band no longer exists, as they de-banded a while ago! May be they wanted to practice what they sang!

The book I am reading from Osho is all talking about how death is beautiful and the common man’s fear for the same. I realized that the ultimate fear in any normal human life is of the death. It’s the only reason we behave the way we do. Some run behind earning money, not realizing where to stop. Some follow the other ways than the legal ones for the same goal. If life is the journey, for this people there’s no end as their destination is not known. And during all the way, they even forget to enjoy the travel. It’s too late when they realize that they can not carry anything with them after they are dead! But, as usual, it’s too late, normally while occupying a bed in ICU of a good hospital and taking aid of all latest medical devices, just to prolong the D-day!

It’s becoming difficult to pen down everything that’s going on my mind. Had so many experiences since last couple of weeks that it’s going to take another couple if I were to write all☺

So on the ending note, I would like to repeat the words from Boyzone’s song: “You think that I don’t even mean a single word I say, (but) It’s only words and words all that I have…”

College, Construction & Car

After a long time I was traveling to main city. The Engineering College where I studied my Mechanical Engineering is on the way to city. I got nostalgic for a moment. It’s been more than 12 years now that I have completed my graduation. All these years, I had never visited my college. But, I still remember the days when I used to walk ~5 kilometers to & fro from the central bus stand in city to save some money. We had a group of 5 close friends and three of us started smoking at the end of 1st year. The money was required to buy the cigarettes which explains my preferred mode of commutation!

I still get that feeling - the typical British styled stone construction of the college, the workshop, the hostel buildings, and the small garden in front of the main building, the professors & the canteen. Were the days when we used to just hang outside college building taking puffs of a shared cigarette talking about personal dreams and ambitions we had, once we would come out of the college.

As I was not 18 till the last year of my diploma course, I could only dream of that day when I could drive my own two wheeler to college, anticipating looks from the girls around (and the envy feelings amongst the boys), but, I wasn’t 18 and I didn’t own any two wheeler...

Now, today I am just passing by the same road besides my college reading the board outside the main entrance that states it’s the Golden Jubilee year of the college. Much has changed ever since I got my admission and its still changing a lot. During my tenure as student, except 4/5 students, rest used bicycles or public transportation to make to college. The road to college was a small, 2 lanes wide without much traffic given any hour of the day.

I am driving my car. I sold my own two wheeler four years back and got this car. The road to college now has a fly-over, and my car was at an altitude where the tallest building in the college campus was shorter than the fly-over. I can not even converse with those close friends as on date, meeting them would be only a dream I guess... I no longer need to walk and save money to buy cigarettes. Instead of buying one, now I end up having a carton of it. Instead of having four guys around waiting their turns to share the cigarette, I have it all just for my self. I always dreamt to drive-in on a two wheeler in the college. Now I have a car but I am no longer a student to drive-in. The road I used to reach college always kept me at a level which was shorter than the smallest construction within the college campus. Today, there is a road which let’s one drive at a level taller than any of my college buildings!

I don’t know what I should be feeling about all these things. I wish some one could counsel me talking about how changes are a must in human life, how our race must grow, be wealthier day by day & build more and more constructions as we evolve. But, may be, what I really need now is my good old friends, only one cigarette to share with them and the same quiet road outside my college compound where we can still hang around and talk about our dreams and ambitions...

Merry Christmas

It's 9 PM, I am still in office, trying to write this blog amidst the loud songs being played outside for Christmas party... Enthuastic youngsters are saltating outside while I am still wondering about how the party should be ? Yes, we do have a formal cultural comitte, full of creative ideas and dedicated budget from management for arranging such events. This event is also pretty much predictable for me after watching a couple in past. There would be some games / performing arts involving employees followed by some snacks. Ending notes will be all current dance numbers played by some D.J. and youngsters would be sweating matching the pace of the music with their steps. Our company spends considerable amount for such events spread evenly throughour the year.

There's an NGO in the city, which runs a hostel and school for orphan female children aged from 3 years till 18 years. The NGO is at its own for running the show. Last week, some employees from the same company visited this NGO. The purpose of the visit was to take individual photographs of these students.

I was shocked to know that having an individual photograph was one of the 'greatest' wish these students had in their mind, which was something never happened in past! It took hardly 4 hours and 6 of the active volunteers from our company to complete the task. I was one amongst these team of 6. We all were requested to be special guests for the annual gathering on the same evening. There were programs like drama, dance and all students were bubbling with excitement. Gifts were distributed to all students by Santa Clause. As a pleasant surprise, our team also received gifts.

Couple of days later, we went again to distrubute individual copies of the photos and were incited to watch the expressions on each of the girls face. I realized the importance of one piece of chemically processed 4" x 6" paper in someone's life! We are in IT, talking about all digital stuff, have latest and greatest gadgets including digital camcorders, and here I was experiencing the power of good old film photography.

On the budget side, the entire photo session would have costed less than the 'snacks' budget for today's Christmas party! On the ROI [ Return Of Investment, an corportate jargon ], I am yet to figure out a common equation for both situations... Ok, a company should have such functions, it's important to increase the 'attachment' of an employee towards his/her company, and most importantly, it is something ALL IT companies do! May be it's gratifying its purpose, may be the money spent is worth from "HR" point of view, but I still can not take the flashing past from the NGO's Christmas Part. They had inadequate lighting, limited mikes, old generation music reproduction systems but still the feeling we got would beat any concert in the Royal Albert Hall.

Interestingly, one of the drama which was performed in the gathering focused on the current lifestyle of the 'happening' generation. It just talked about our lifestyles, imprisonment of ourselves to our own devices, moblie phones becoming limbs and so on...

I am suddenly feeling the "hollowness" on my floor as the office party just got over. The silence appears as precious to me as a bottle of mineral water to one in the middle of a desert. Housekeeping guys are clearing up the party location, DJ and his Disco gizmos are back on their way. Wow, we have just had another gala celebration of Christmas.

Thou Shalt Not Covet!

Shortest Love Story

"Wiil you marry me?" - He asked her.
"No."
And they lived happily ever after...

Somehow, I have started believing in this story!

Get someone on the other side of a Ray Ban…

It was a nice catchy ad by leading manufacturer of shades. And it did mean something different than the usual “A gift for some one you love” kind of ads. It made a difference about “which side of the goggle” and of course it was not the one, which comes to your mind the moment you think of shades.

This advertisement has inspired me to pick the name of my blog – “behind pink glasses” As one might guess, most of the writing coming out of my thoughts would be not the usual side of life. I am afraid of the whiter shade of pale, often projected by all the romantic people on this earth. It’s not that I want to demark my self than all these optimistic writers and poets, but life has started taking it’s toll after letting me enjoy the cruise rides and thrills of speeding on the way… And yes, during those rides on sunny days, I did wear my own Ray Ban :)

A lot has been advertised about these glasses from Ray Ban, and at once, I have even tested the claims of the UV cut-off and optical quality of it. Thanks of my first employer where we had the world-class setup to test optics. During all these tests, I often used to wonder if something similar did exist for human eyes, which would hide themselves behind this optics. The reasons would be as simple as protection from harsh sun light, the UV rays, and it could be as complicated as hiding the true feelings one is carrying with him.

One of the famous writer, while describing the presence of an actor in a funeral of a playback singer, explained the need felt by that actor for wearing dark glasses in such a touching manner that from that moment onwards whenever I get to see any one wearing shades in a funeral, I ought to remember his lines… “You can somehow control the tremors of your body by seeking some one to support you. You can clench your jaws so that the words do not echo your whimper, but it’s impossible to not let your eyes know the world what your feelings are. You have to be hiding your eyes behind the other side of shades…”