Hum Jo Saath Hai

Today the campus was being lashed by heavy rains and dark clouds hovered in the sky like pallbearers signifying the ominous.Classes had gotten over an hour ago and yet there was no sign of the ignominious campus bus.The bus was predictably, still making way through the concrete pathways of the university.

To pass time, one had the company of friends.Friends who offered their incisive comments on the fury of nature and the toll it took on poor students like us.The rain drops fell to the rhythm of the heated discussion.Suddenly there was the lull. No more was the whips of water lashing on the roof of the newly built teaching block.The discussion stopped and so had the rain!But there was no sign of the wretched bus yet!Then there was the niggling worry of getting past the flooded and mutilated roads to get to the main road.

All eyes were glued to the glass doors and ears awaiting the rumbling noise of the eight wheeler.The dust had settled down and the warm environ cooled by a few notches. As troubled thoughts entered confused minds, the famous prattle was heard.Salvation had arrived!and in what a package!

Then there was the cacophony of voices and the scramble for seats.Once settled besides my companions i finally felt at peace.The drenched roads were traversed in the comfort of company.The bus was just about to reach the exit when it was confronted by an obstacle.The bus jerked and all fellow travellers fell silent.Investigative journalism (common trait in Indians) revealed the object of furore - a fallen tree!The rains had managed to uproot the leafy organism from its long held position in the lush lawn to occupy the shameful position in the middle of the road.The tree lay dismal,helpless and disowned.It was the death of a life giver.

But who had the time to mourn for it? the most important issue was to get home!Some people opted for the easy way out they walked out of the bus preferring to cover the distance on foot and avoiding the delay of an obstructed bus.There were others who chose to wait and see what would transpire. And yet others who made a choice to take constructive action.Egged on by friends some boys along with the conductor and driver  started breaking the branches that stood in the way.The process was tedious and hilarious.Some tumbled to the ground in the struggle to break the branches.While almost all got horribly drenched.Within five minutes, the work was done; the road cleared.

The boys received the adulation of war veterans from their fellow students.They were received with much fanfare and a short spell of claps.The conductor dusting his trousers enters the bus.Stoically he says "Ishwar ka naam lekar insaan eksaath kuch bhi kar sakta hai".

The comment is lauded and a lesson driven home.In the storms of life, what determines victory is the attitude to the storm. We can choose to give up,choose to wait dejectedly and watch or like the group of men take a decision to face hurdles headlong.Combined with the decision of working together, the impossible is made possible..In the light of the damning revelations about the commonwealth games preparations, the lesson will be of use if applied.Maybe strength lies in not being passive observers and active criticizers but a willing citizenry.Together we can achieve and together we will - Ham jo saath hai!