Quiz me again!!!

“There’s this interschool quiz tomorrow, are you and Avani interested in participating in it???”
Tomorrow was Sunday & Monday onwards our unit tests (hmm…sadly those happened every other month) were to begin.

“Its just the written round, you could always give it a try.” Our teacher had to say something, as all we did was stand and stare at her and then at each other. We did want to participate but those tests weren’t allowing us to decide.
The next thing I remember is calling up our respective moms (back then in class VIII, mummy knew best…for me she still knows best :p)

Our moms were pretty cool, “Of course u can participate, what’s the harm??”
There wasn’t going to be any harm unless we fared poorly in those unit tests (!!!) That’s another story though…; )

The quiz venue was interesting in itself- St Paul Boys School (please, no raised eyebrows!) Avani was late, thanks to a flat bicycle tyre but we managed to be in time (well, the school being a 5 min. walk from my place)
Now that I think of it the written round was a quite simply, a cakewalk…

Then came the semifinal (not without its own hiccups), the next Sunday. By then our tests were over and well the results werent that bad. (…Hehe)
I distinctly remember nibbling those potato chips (provided by the sponsors), while waiting for my chance to get on stage for the quiz. We did sail through the semis as well.

Ah! The final was quite awesome…the whole atmosphere buzzed with the noises of students cheering their schools, parents eager to witness their wards coming out on top…that reminds me…I’d strictly told my Aai and Pappa not to be there (I knew I’d be nervous if they came) But who listens to me…they did come!!

Before the start of the quiz I remember avani and me eyeing the magnificent trophy…how we longed to hold it in our hands, to win it, possess it!!

Being in the finals, competing against 4 other top schools was in itself an achievement.
That Saturday when we’d called up our moms, who’d have thought of it…at that time doing well in tests was all we cared about.

But now we wanted to win and it was the only thing that mattered.

The stage was finally set…10 rounds…one winner.
The excitement was palpable, round 1… 2, …3…4, it went on and on.
We lead in one round, just to concede it in the next. It went neck to neck. The uncertainty prevailed till the very last round…rapid fire…we answered most of the questions and the other schools just couldn’t catch up…Hurrah! We’d won…. yeah we’ won!
How ecstatic we were…the gleaming trophy looked awesome in our hands.

The moment was overwhelming…we’d made all Raphaelites and ourselves proud.

As I think of those days I realize it’s not worth worrying about little things (those unit tests,u see) in life. It’s about seizing your opportunities, exploring new horizons, treading those unknown paths and most importantly following your heart…sounds cliché but that’s just the way it is!!!:)

Love it this way!!!

Ever thought of thinking with your heart and felt like feeling with the mind…hehe!!

Once upon a time…
All my decisions were taken,
By sumone whom I trusted
And knew wud never be mistaken.

It didn’t question my faith
You see I cud never go wrong.
So to put it simply,
My life was clearly on song.

Listening became my forte,
As it did all the talking,
Surprisingly, it had those answers,
Which I’d been frantically seeking.

Soon everyone around me changed
But I never felt the need.
Yet sumwhere deep inside me
My heart cud’nt help but bleed

The heart was torn apart,
Shifting the onus to my mind.
All kinds of thoughts lay scattered there
But could my feelings be left behind??

The brain works quite differently
Making the decisions of my heart
Seem like a thing of the past
Yet emotions still play their part…

As my mind reigns supreme today
I’d want to leave it that way
But thinking about it, I still feel
Heart over mind wud be better any day…
What say???

I don’t know why but after a long time I’ve derived satisfaction from what I’ve written.
Many years back…I remember this person reading my poems and saying “Not bad but they lack optimism somewhere…Try being more optimistic”

I hadn’t forgotten those words but never knew how to put them into practice…
My recent works I feel do have that optimism in them. Yeah, somewhere they do...
There is no apparent reason(maybe i dont wish to search for the reasons) :P
But I’m glad but more than that I’m really satisfied…creative satisfaction…
Aha! Love the sound of it…;)

How True...

Well I read this piece in the TOI's Sacred Space column. Found it quite relevant in the present context!! Just give it a thought...

We’ve taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider roads but narrower viewpoints.
We spend more, but have less, buy more but enjoy less.
We’ve bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time.
We’ve more degrees but less sense, more knowledge but less judgment, more experts yet more problems, more medicine but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, read too little, watch TV too much and pray too seldom.

We’ve multiplied our possessions but reduced our values.
We talk too much, love too seldom and hate too often.

We’ve learned how to make a living but not a life.
We’ve added years to life not life to years.
We’ve been all the way to the moon and back but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.
We conquered outer space but not inner space.
We’ve done larger things but not better things…

We plan more but accomplish less.
We’ve learned to rush but not to wait.
We’ve more information but we communicate less and less…

- George Carlin