As I thought to start writing this post, my cell beeped...our hind wall collapsed bhaiya. It was Rohit, my roommate, telling me something I never imagined. I just called back. He told that in an attempt to clear off the heap of construction material by the side of our hostel room, the JCB machine hit the wall and made a through-n-through hole in it. I was amazed at the news, not knowing how to react. At first I thought he was just trying to panic me with a false news but soon, a number of text messages heaped up in my inbox either annoyingly congratulating me or funnily consoling me over the mini-disaster. The news was no joke but true. Rohit further relaxed me by taking some quick actions over getting it temporarily and then permanently fixed. I wish I was there to see what it looked like, since now I am still at home, no more on recovery leave but on Diwali bunk. We never let our administration take any pains to declare holidays rather we bunk the classes prior to the official announcement of vacations.
Thus, another point has been officially included in our list of adventures at our college by the successful and dramatic collapse of the hind wall. That was a real BREAKING NEWS for me. It has reminded me of the countless previous adventurous experiences in the college and hostel, the most outstanding ones of which, I would be talking about in my subsequent posts. For the time being, may God prevent any creature enter the room through that hole till it gets repaired by the next afternoon...
Friday, October 29, 2010
The First Festival At Hostel...
Yaar, I never imagined I would be out of home on a festival like Dussehra!
Was my exclamation to Manu. It was Navratri just started when we first went to the college and so going home just in a week was not possible. We were, thus, there at our hostel on Dussehra. It was yet another silly but hard reality for us to accept that we had to celebrate festivals away from home. I don't know what makes festivals joyous only when you are with your family, or perhaps its just a subjective thought.
Well, I woke up early and compelled everyone leave bed to get ready for something interesting I had secretly planned out. I was done with offering my prayers to Lord Rama and then announced to my colleagues about the cricket match we had organised as a mark of the holy fight on Dussehra. At the same time I advised everyone not to take the match by heart and just play it for fun. But I somewhere knew that was not going to be the fate of the match, because the two opponent teams had actually been silently opposing each other since the very first day of the college. God! Let not holding this match become my mistake!! I prayed though I knew none of them was going to know who was behind organising that match. Still, I didn't want to get defeated, nor did I want any actual fight.
In the very early days, we had this loudspeaker for announcements in the hostel. We took it out and gave it to a staff member Abhishek Singh (whom we now better know as Dabloo Bhaiya) to carry out commentary in such a way that would try keeping the game spirit high and keep them off any possible quarrel. Dabloo bhaiya did that well. I cheered up both the teams and requested other viewers also to do so though people knew who supported whom. Heading towards the end of the match, my team was short of two runs and the last wicket was left. The last batsman was (I didn't knew how) declared 'run out' and they won the match by one run. I was glad all took this good at heart and nothing bad popped out of that first small secret event planned by me.
Cricket matches, since then, became a regular battlefield for the boys at our college though, by God's grace, no quarrels ever arose apart from the game. And of course, I was never ever a part of any cricket match since it was not my cup of tea...
Was my exclamation to Manu. It was Navratri just started when we first went to the college and so going home just in a week was not possible. We were, thus, there at our hostel on Dussehra. It was yet another silly but hard reality for us to accept that we had to celebrate festivals away from home. I don't know what makes festivals joyous only when you are with your family, or perhaps its just a subjective thought.
Well, I woke up early and compelled everyone leave bed to get ready for something interesting I had secretly planned out. I was done with offering my prayers to Lord Rama and then announced to my colleagues about the cricket match we had organised as a mark of the holy fight on Dussehra. At the same time I advised everyone not to take the match by heart and just play it for fun. But I somewhere knew that was not going to be the fate of the match, because the two opponent teams had actually been silently opposing each other since the very first day of the college. God! Let not holding this match become my mistake!! I prayed though I knew none of them was going to know who was behind organising that match. Still, I didn't want to get defeated, nor did I want any actual fight.
In the very early days, we had this loudspeaker for announcements in the hostel. We took it out and gave it to a staff member Abhishek Singh (whom we now better know as Dabloo Bhaiya) to carry out commentary in such a way that would try keeping the game spirit high and keep them off any possible quarrel. Dabloo bhaiya did that well. I cheered up both the teams and requested other viewers also to do so though people knew who supported whom. Heading towards the end of the match, my team was short of two runs and the last wicket was left. The last batsman was (I didn't knew how) declared 'run out' and they won the match by one run. I was glad all took this good at heart and nothing bad popped out of that first small secret event planned by me.
Cricket matches, since then, became a regular battlefield for the boys at our college though, by God's grace, no quarrels ever arose apart from the game. And of course, I was never ever a part of any cricket match since it was not my cup of tea...
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
The Sword of Admission...
Hey! Did you hear all our admissions have been cancelled by the admission authority?
This had been a usual exclamation and could be heard from almost everyone almost everyday. Our medical college had been in its first year of education that time. And as usual, there were some problems we heard regarding the recognition, affiliation etc. of our batch. We, coming from various parts of the country, were one at worrying about our admissions. No matter howsoever diverse our languages, cultures, customs and backgrounds were, we all used to be tense in a single language. This added tension of admissions was yet another factor that added to my home sickness. And not to forget one of my then most favourite songs from Chak De India that said,'...Laut ke aayega re shart laga le...' (...you would come back, I bet...) that made me feel I was destined to go back home. But still there was something that kept on telling from inside, Study Abhishek, study. Your admission is confirmed. I didn't give up studying, rather kept on telling others to study so that we may not panic when our admissions would get confirmed and we would appear in the university exams in a couple of months.
Today, when all those initial issues are no more, I wonder how and why we worried for such small things that time. But yes, then we too were little kids out of our homes away from our families for the first time in life and we didn't know what to worry about and what not. We were so immature that we did use to bother about what everyone said about everyone. We were so immature that we could not imagine life without pals. We did not know how to go to a cinema hall alone without friends. As if we didn't know that we were from different homes, different families, different states and the foremost, we were different. Yes! We all were different, though many of us still don't believe it. But, differences arose. Sometimes on the matters of education, management, faculties, girls and sometimes on matters we couldn't understand and so we called those as issues of personal ego. Well, gradually we learnt that these are not very big but usual things one encounters throughout the whole life.
On one hand, things were running ahead and on the other, I kept standing for sometime for my fellow friends to come together so that we all could become a part of all the fun and joy of studies, parties, outings, movies and all that one could expect college students do. But to my surprise, I was somewhere thrown aside by my dear younger brothers in almost all the activities we did, except studies. My job was then confined to just going to college alone, attending lectures and practicals alone, marking proxy attendances for them and then coming back to hostel to find all of them disappeared. The late evening I would come to know they went out for an outing or a movie. My own roommate had withdrawn his admission himself and so I was left in the room all alone. As the days passed, this word kind of became my personality, my destiny...ALONE.
I was surprised to know that all this was just because I behaved like an elder brother and they said one could not share doing such activities with his elder brother. I wondered how and why did I never notice any of my school friends not sharing things with their brothers. I thought a brother was the best person to share all good and bad things with. Well how would have I known, the ultimate fact was that I didn't have a brother. And somewhere I started realising that I was much happy with my Papa-Mumma and both elder sisters since I could share almost everything with them. Yes, that was cent percent true. But still, something kept on aching inside...
This had been a usual exclamation and could be heard from almost everyone almost everyday. Our medical college had been in its first year of education that time. And as usual, there were some problems we heard regarding the recognition, affiliation etc. of our batch. We, coming from various parts of the country, were one at worrying about our admissions. No matter howsoever diverse our languages, cultures, customs and backgrounds were, we all used to be tense in a single language. This added tension of admissions was yet another factor that added to my home sickness. And not to forget one of my then most favourite songs from Chak De India that said,'...Laut ke aayega re shart laga le...' (...you would come back, I bet...) that made me feel I was destined to go back home. But still there was something that kept on telling from inside, Study Abhishek, study. Your admission is confirmed. I didn't give up studying, rather kept on telling others to study so that we may not panic when our admissions would get confirmed and we would appear in the university exams in a couple of months.
Today, when all those initial issues are no more, I wonder how and why we worried for such small things that time. But yes, then we too were little kids out of our homes away from our families for the first time in life and we didn't know what to worry about and what not. We were so immature that we did use to bother about what everyone said about everyone. We were so immature that we could not imagine life without pals. We did not know how to go to a cinema hall alone without friends. As if we didn't know that we were from different homes, different families, different states and the foremost, we were different. Yes! We all were different, though many of us still don't believe it. But, differences arose. Sometimes on the matters of education, management, faculties, girls and sometimes on matters we couldn't understand and so we called those as issues of personal ego. Well, gradually we learnt that these are not very big but usual things one encounters throughout the whole life.
On one hand, things were running ahead and on the other, I kept standing for sometime for my fellow friends to come together so that we all could become a part of all the fun and joy of studies, parties, outings, movies and all that one could expect college students do. But to my surprise, I was somewhere thrown aside by my dear younger brothers in almost all the activities we did, except studies. My job was then confined to just going to college alone, attending lectures and practicals alone, marking proxy attendances for them and then coming back to hostel to find all of them disappeared. The late evening I would come to know they went out for an outing or a movie. My own roommate had withdrawn his admission himself and so I was left in the room all alone. As the days passed, this word kind of became my personality, my destiny...ALONE.
I was surprised to know that all this was just because I behaved like an elder brother and they said one could not share doing such activities with his elder brother. I wondered how and why did I never notice any of my school friends not sharing things with their brothers. I thought a brother was the best person to share all good and bad things with. Well how would have I known, the ultimate fact was that I didn't have a brother. And somewhere I started realising that I was much happy with my Papa-Mumma and both elder sisters since I could share almost everything with them. Yes, that was cent percent true. But still, something kept on aching inside...
Monday, October 25, 2010
My First Day At College....
I set on for my journey to an entirely new life on 13th October 2007, with a huge luggage with me (I wonder whether I was being sent for studies or driven away from home forever.) That day I didn't go to my hostel. The very next day, 14th October 2007, I reached hostel after traveling on a road where one would shake his spine on the humps and bumps of the so called national highway. My hostel is around 25 kilometers away from the main city. Everywhere around the college campus was only fields and farms. No one to see, no noises to be heard and nowhere to escape away. A completely peaceful (then silently haunting) place where one could easily study in the calm environment provided we went there for studies.
How the hell you could give the room allotted to me to somebody else?
That was my first conversation with my warden. And shockingly, he didn't know that I had already been allotted that room on my first visit at the time of admission. Still I managed to keep my luggage in the same room just to find a face that was in no way interested in staying with me. That was the very first moment I called out in my heart, Oh Mumma-Papa, where have you sent me?
Hi, myself Pawan. What's your good name?
That was the very first introduction by one of my dearest fellows now, Pawan Maheshwari. He was the one with whom I felt that people can talk to me here. Because when you step out of your home for the very first time, you wonder whether the world is gonna talk to you or not. And when somebody talks to you, you feel you are not all alone. Well, I realized that all of us had left their homes to study there and all would be as uncomfortable as me. Still, that was my tendency not to talk to strangers at once.
Gradually many of us met with each other and by the night, around eight of us were sitting by volleyball court in front of room no. 13-14. Yes, this 'Room no. 13-14' was the usual nomenclature people used since it was one the most popular groups since the very beginning. Room no. 13 was allotted to Manu and Abhijeet. And Sagar and Pawan were there in room no. 14. All others such asa Sudhanshu, Rohit, Vatsalya, Rohan, Manish, Anwar and myself (only if I haven't forgotten to name somebody who was present there since the very beginning) used to have fun for the whole day and some of us even whole night in room no. 13, even Sagar and Pawan would leave their room to gossip in there. Sometimes even six-seven of us would sleep together on just two iron strip beds which used to bend like boats by the morning. (And now I wonder how I don't get space on a double bed meant only for two).
First night in the Student Mess was horrible for all of us, finding something to eat out of that so-called homely food. But food was not at all significant that day since the very next day, i.e. 15th October was our first class where we would meet the administrative and faculty members and of course, the most important, the residents of the other huge building around 100 feet away from our hostel. We now call it as GH (abbreviated Girls Hostel).
Do I know you? Have we met at the pre-medical test center? Where are you from? May I have your number please?
These were some of the quite usual questions for a couple of days in the college among both the genders. Gradually, as MBBS started trying its strength over us, these questions subsided and gave way for new questions as Hey, whats fishy between them? Do you know she is committed to him? Are they really seeing each other? Do you feel he would be able to woo her?
I didn't, at that time, understand why everyone was in a damn hurry to impress the opposite gender. (And now when I have understood that, there's no use of knowing it).
During all this running over everywhere, studies were lost somewhere. But yes, we used to visit library almost everyday, just in case if someone from GH would pop up with a doubt in Anatomy in her small innocent mind. Of course those innocent, cute and studious chicks (who used to re-do their lip glosses every five minutes even in the library) had some doubts in Anatomy. But they used to get their doubts cleared only by the guys with the hardest and hottest anatomies. In due course of time, everyone was studying everyone's anatomy, leaving aside our Anatomy theory books.
I remember I once thought that medical college was not meant for me since I would never be able to fit into this frame of a juncture striving hard for everything (except studies). But yes, we started studying soon, since that was also a part of the very strategy to achieve our ultimate goal (any hot friend from the GH). Meanwhile, studies had found their importance, so did I. Just because of my so-called caring nature, Manu once spontaneously called me Bhaiya (meaning elder brother) and soon many of those who used to call me by my name earlier, started calling me Bhaiya, Big B, Abhi Bro etc. I enjoyed that feeling of being called so since I always wanted, beside my two very loving elder sisters, to have a brother over whom I could shower all my love and care like that I had received from my parents and elder sisters ever since I started understanding things. By a very short span of time, I had got many younger brothers who gave me love and respect and got, in turn, love and care from my side.
Life had started showing me the golden days it concealed in itself for me.....
How the hell you could give the room allotted to me to somebody else?
That was my first conversation with my warden. And shockingly, he didn't know that I had already been allotted that room on my first visit at the time of admission. Still I managed to keep my luggage in the same room just to find a face that was in no way interested in staying with me. That was the very first moment I called out in my heart, Oh Mumma-Papa, where have you sent me?
Hi, myself Pawan. What's your good name?
That was the very first introduction by one of my dearest fellows now, Pawan Maheshwari. He was the one with whom I felt that people can talk to me here. Because when you step out of your home for the very first time, you wonder whether the world is gonna talk to you or not. And when somebody talks to you, you feel you are not all alone. Well, I realized that all of us had left their homes to study there and all would be as uncomfortable as me. Still, that was my tendency not to talk to strangers at once.
Gradually many of us met with each other and by the night, around eight of us were sitting by volleyball court in front of room no. 13-14. Yes, this 'Room no. 13-14' was the usual nomenclature people used since it was one the most popular groups since the very beginning. Room no. 13 was allotted to Manu and Abhijeet. And Sagar and Pawan were there in room no. 14. All others such asa Sudhanshu, Rohit, Vatsalya, Rohan, Manish, Anwar and myself (only if I haven't forgotten to name somebody who was present there since the very beginning) used to have fun for the whole day and some of us even whole night in room no. 13, even Sagar and Pawan would leave their room to gossip in there. Sometimes even six-seven of us would sleep together on just two iron strip beds which used to bend like boats by the morning. (And now I wonder how I don't get space on a double bed meant only for two).
First night in the Student Mess was horrible for all of us, finding something to eat out of that so-called homely food. But food was not at all significant that day since the very next day, i.e. 15th October was our first class where we would meet the administrative and faculty members and of course, the most important, the residents of the other huge building around 100 feet away from our hostel. We now call it as GH (abbreviated Girls Hostel).
Do I know you? Have we met at the pre-medical test center? Where are you from? May I have your number please?
These were some of the quite usual questions for a couple of days in the college among both the genders. Gradually, as MBBS started trying its strength over us, these questions subsided and gave way for new questions as Hey, whats fishy between them? Do you know she is committed to him? Are they really seeing each other? Do you feel he would be able to woo her?
I didn't, at that time, understand why everyone was in a damn hurry to impress the opposite gender. (And now when I have understood that, there's no use of knowing it).
During all this running over everywhere, studies were lost somewhere. But yes, we used to visit library almost everyday, just in case if someone from GH would pop up with a doubt in Anatomy in her small innocent mind. Of course those innocent, cute and studious chicks (who used to re-do their lip glosses every five minutes even in the library) had some doubts in Anatomy. But they used to get their doubts cleared only by the guys with the hardest and hottest anatomies. In due course of time, everyone was studying everyone's anatomy, leaving aside our Anatomy theory books.
I remember I once thought that medical college was not meant for me since I would never be able to fit into this frame of a juncture striving hard for everything (except studies). But yes, we started studying soon, since that was also a part of the very strategy to achieve our ultimate goal (any hot friend from the GH). Meanwhile, studies had found their importance, so did I. Just because of my so-called caring nature, Manu once spontaneously called me Bhaiya (meaning elder brother) and soon many of those who used to call me by my name earlier, started calling me Bhaiya, Big B, Abhi Bro etc. I enjoyed that feeling of being called so since I always wanted, beside my two very loving elder sisters, to have a brother over whom I could shower all my love and care like that I had received from my parents and elder sisters ever since I started understanding things. By a very short span of time, I had got many younger brothers who gave me love and respect and got, in turn, love and care from my side.
Life had started showing me the golden days it concealed in itself for me.....
The Present.....
Right now I am at home, enjoying my medical leave after being operated for a bad appendix, rather a VERY BAD appendix, as my professor-surgeon said to me just after stitching the contents of my body again into one. I experienced one of the most severe abdominal pains, as they say, for the very first and hopefully, the last time of my life. (I wonder how women bear child birth.) They have advised me to take rest, have a good sleep, walk for several times a day and not to lift weight or any such work that apparently increases intra-abdominal pressure.
I am religiously following all the precautions and advices since I have encountered this pain merely for my ignorance towards my own. Yes, I don't look after myself. I have always enjoyed taking care of others (though at the cost of my own joys, happiness and health). But yes, I have no regrets. And why should I? I always get huge satisfaction when I see myself being able to help someone because I think, rather I believe, that God doesn't give this ability of helping and caring for others to everyone. And if he shows me the path of doing good to anyone, its me who is actually blessed.
My pals say this tendency of mine is responsible for my ignorance towards the pain I was experiencing since one week prior to the surgery and that was the only thing rendering me in intense pain for two whole days and a night.
Well, why to talk of pain when there are other pleasant things to say about? 'Pain' has always been a part of life as salt is to food, can't do without it, can't bear much of it. So I hope we shall talk about the pleasant aspect of the present. The most exciting thing is that I am sleeping for around 12 hours a day after a long period of around 8 months when I was frequently bombarded with episodes of insomnia. I have never ever let tensions rule my head but sleeplessness, somehow, found its way in the form of examination anxiety, my sister's wedding, a friend's accident, the annual fest, Ganesh festival, Durga festival and so on. But still, Abhishek Bachhotiya is a happy man.
In my next post, I am going to write about my first day at college and hostel, of which I celebrated the 3rd anniversary on 14th October 2010. Giving rest to my fingers now isn't my own choice, but have to go since Mom is standing with a glass of milk near me and I don't want her to complain ever again to my professors that I don't eat well and that I don't give an ear to her advices on eating. Till then....
I am religiously following all the precautions and advices since I have encountered this pain merely for my ignorance towards my own. Yes, I don't look after myself. I have always enjoyed taking care of others (though at the cost of my own joys, happiness and health). But yes, I have no regrets. And why should I? I always get huge satisfaction when I see myself being able to help someone because I think, rather I believe, that God doesn't give this ability of helping and caring for others to everyone. And if he shows me the path of doing good to anyone, its me who is actually blessed.
My pals say this tendency of mine is responsible for my ignorance towards the pain I was experiencing since one week prior to the surgery and that was the only thing rendering me in intense pain for two whole days and a night.
Well, why to talk of pain when there are other pleasant things to say about? 'Pain' has always been a part of life as salt is to food, can't do without it, can't bear much of it. So I hope we shall talk about the pleasant aspect of the present. The most exciting thing is that I am sleeping for around 12 hours a day after a long period of around 8 months when I was frequently bombarded with episodes of insomnia. I have never ever let tensions rule my head but sleeplessness, somehow, found its way in the form of examination anxiety, my sister's wedding, a friend's accident, the annual fest, Ganesh festival, Durga festival and so on. But still, Abhishek Bachhotiya is a happy man.
In my next post, I am going to write about my first day at college and hostel, of which I celebrated the 3rd anniversary on 14th October 2010. Giving rest to my fingers now isn't my own choice, but have to go since Mom is standing with a glass of milk near me and I don't want her to complain ever again to my professors that I don't eat well and that I don't give an ear to her advices on eating. Till then....
Sunday, October 24, 2010
The Beginning....
I am starting off with the present, though the stories I am going to tell are, of course, from the recent as well as far past. But I hope my readers should first know who I am and why am I eager to share my stories.
First of all, let me have an opportunity to introduce myself in brief. Myself, Abhishek Bachhotiya, a medical student in the heart of India. It is only the third year of mine in the field of medicine, since I am studying in MBBS-III professional. But I have had experiences in my such a brief (and still continuing) college life, as many as one can observe and absorb. I am eager to express many of my big and small experiences for my friends and those who are yet to become my buddies. It is not that I am a superstar or something for which people would like to know and talk about me, but I have been sincerely loved by people some of whom, have now encouraged me to write about myself. I, being totally a beginner in the sphere of blogging, found it a bit energetic to write about things occurring around and those already occurred. I had always seen the logo of "Blogger.com" on many web pages but never thought I would once move writing in it. So my first heartfelt gratitude to my family, my pals and "Blogger.com".
As I proceed towards the main content of this blog,i.e. My College Stories, I thank everyone for being there in those events occurring to me. My College Stories is not solely my own stories, but OUR stories being narrated by me. 'Who all are included in my OURS?' would be subsequently revealed in my later writings. So here I have completed my run up and I am finally taking off the flight of My College Stories.....
First of all, let me have an opportunity to introduce myself in brief. Myself, Abhishek Bachhotiya, a medical student in the heart of India. It is only the third year of mine in the field of medicine, since I am studying in MBBS-III professional. But I have had experiences in my such a brief (and still continuing) college life, as many as one can observe and absorb. I am eager to express many of my big and small experiences for my friends and those who are yet to become my buddies. It is not that I am a superstar or something for which people would like to know and talk about me, but I have been sincerely loved by people some of whom, have now encouraged me to write about myself. I, being totally a beginner in the sphere of blogging, found it a bit energetic to write about things occurring around and those already occurred. I had always seen the logo of "Blogger.com" on many web pages but never thought I would once move writing in it. So my first heartfelt gratitude to my family, my pals and "Blogger.com".
As I proceed towards the main content of this blog,i.e. My College Stories, I thank everyone for being there in those events occurring to me. My College Stories is not solely my own stories, but OUR stories being narrated by me. 'Who all are included in my OURS?' would be subsequently revealed in my later writings. So here I have completed my run up and I am finally taking off the flight of My College Stories.....
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