How it feels to be forty tonight

As the clock strikes 12 midnight today, I will enter into the exclusive club of "40+" . The diametrically opposite progress of the hair and the waistline have already been ringing the welcome bell for quite some time. The wiser lot tells in squatness lies the beauty of life. I am no wise and given a choice, I will love to live thousand years in this beautiful world.

Life has been a great leveler. While my profession took me to places meeting people of diverse stratum, all along deep in my heart, I have been a loner. I have a world of my own and each day, I live few precious moments in my place, unnoticed and unseen by the world outside.

When I became a father, for the first time, I realized the true values of my own parents.  While bosses have been a favorite punching bag during discussion, I have been lucky  to get superiors who nurtured me as a professional and a great part of what I am today, it is for those mentoring done at the right time and place. After I got married, I have innumerable number of squabbles with my wife Arpana in the last 12 years for her ever readiness to forfeit her own comfort for others. I didn’t expect the excitement of being together to last this long without much of an extra effort.

During the days of early youth, all I wanted to be a great author. The promise I showed tapered off with time. Yet, there are not many people as sensible to the outside world as writers are. Though third rated, I am blessed to be one amongst the few to feel the divine pleasure which every writer experiences in his life time.

All along, I have relished life, good food, good place and above all company of intelligent people. I have learnt to be happy seeing others achieve high. The greatest thing to happen in my life over the last ten years is to overcome envies to a large extent.

At 40, the desire and fire inside still burns, still feel like capable to move around like someone in early youth. Yet, even the greatest athlete slows down by 40. Youth  is such an amazing joy, the mere thought of disintegrating over the next twenty years hurts very hard.

I have carried all along the modest beginning as one of the five siblings of a teacher’s family. Life has been a constant battle to be in the right side of conscience. The temptations are too strong at times.

Though wish to live thousand years,  when I finish the next forty years, I will better leave this beautiful world than living life as a liability. Living with pride is all I wish to do in life.

 

 You can contact Kamaljit at kamaljitmedhi1975@gmail.com

Narendra Modi, visit of the American President and others

(1)

Unlike many of my friends, I don't dislike Narendra Modi though I don’t have any leaning towards the political party he heads. All along, I have been non- political except for a brief period in Engineering College when thoughts of becoming a future politician flashed in my mind. Let me tell you, in the last few elections, I have voted for different parties like Congress in Assam, CPM in Bengal and also once for AGP for a change.

Like millions of voters, I too voted for Narendra Modi in the last Loksabha Election who promised to bring perceptible change to the otherwise stagnant country. In the last nine months, the NDA government has stabilized the rot and reversed the policy paralysis in some areas. However, like many of the sycophants, I am writing this post neither to glorify Mr Modi nor it is my intent to behave like his avowed critics.

When Mr. Modi became the Prime Minister, I was delighted seeing a former “Chaiwalla” as  the Prime Minister true to the mood of an aspiring, resurgent and vibrant young country like India where still 70% people live sans the most basic amenities of life. But, I was thoroughly disappointed seeing Mr. Modi wearing a suit with his name printed all over during the last visit of the American President. Modi’s strength should be his closeness to the real India. The country does n’t need another style icon to give some Michelle Obama or Bollywood fake heroes run for money but the able administrator which he has been all throughout.

Power often  charms people like the flowers to the bees. History says that too much of self glorification and arrogance led to the fall of many heroes. I really don’t understand what made Mr. Modi call the American President by the first name while Mr Obama himself was addressing our PM as Mr. Prime Minister. And then telling Mr Obama about his heroics in childhood to fight with a crocodile was not cutting any ice either.

Mr. Modi is undoubtedly the most popular Prime Minister after Pandit Nehru. He simply mesmerises the crowd when he speaks. The entire power in Delhi seems to concentrate around him as he has almost made the cabinet powerless. Till now, he has not faced any major electoral jolt. It will be interesting to see how he acts and handles when such situation actually arise.   

As a professional person, I am aware that  even a project worth few hundred crores requires about three to four years time to get installed and commissioned. So, expecting the moon so soon from Mr. Modi is not at all rational. I will be rather patient and give him time. There's no denying he started very well.  All I expect him to build the platform in the next five years on which India can excel in the next ten to twenty years to become a superpower . If that happens, Narendra Modi will remain a cult figure in India irrespective of his murky past. The fringe elements will cause hindrance here and there. All he needs to remain firmly rooted. Let his actions speak louder than the electoral rhetoric.  

(2)

If any country, I love and hate at the same time, it is America. I love its attitude and the unbound energy of its people. Many of my personal heroes belong to that country. Yet, this country played a pivotal role in creating the evils which has threatened to disrupt the world today-the Islamic terrorism. America will never apologize to the world for abetting the Talibans and its other offshoots. The creation of a fanatical force in Afghanistan must have been done with a larger goal to destabilize Russia, India and China in the near future. With the Europe already waning, that provides America the brawny leverage to remain the supreme power for a long period.

I was shocked why no Indian journalist ever dared to ask Mr Obama why his country warned Pakistan not to indulge in  any misadventure only during the time of his visit ? Can we decipher that warning as America's tacit approval to Pakistan to carry out any dastardly acts of terrorism in India after Mr Obama leaves the country ! Such double speak from the land of Martin Luther King will continue in future too. I don't understand what made the entire country go into the spell of feverish frenzy during Mr Obama's visit.

(3)

If the exit polls go right this time, AAP will surely form the Government in Delhi tomorrow. It will be a loss for Delhi as I believe Kiran Bedi is a better CM candidate any day than Mr Kejriwal. It was heartening to note that Arvind ,the person who came to politics to change its course has himself become a part of the system. AAP has adopted well to the creepy political culture and there is hardly any difference to distinguish it from the other parties. For BJP, you can’t help much, where even the Party Vision Document goes to the public without any proof reading.

The real losers are the people of Delhi. You are truly into fire from the frying pan now.

You can contact Kamaljit at kamaljitmedhi1975@gmail.com

We all will be loners someday

My mother's life revolved around 6 of us, Father and five children. All of us were demanding and she took enormous pain to manage time to carry out all the household jobs, help us with home work and read books. As her education stopped right after matriculation for marriage, she wanted all the children to be equally good at studies. At school, she won Government scholarship while myself failed to get any till school. 

One by one, we left home after school. First to Cotton College followed by either university or Engineering College. One by one went further away for jobs and marriage leaving our parents to remain alone at home. When we were not around, our empty beds reminded them about us. 

This time in Bihu, all of us were together at home after quite some time. Parents were so happy, they became children again. Once again, all of us left them one by one . Yesterday, somehow she missed the step, fell down and had multiple fracture at her leg. 

So while , her fractured bone is being fixed in Guwahati, I am far away in Delhi and she says I don't need to rush leaving my jobs. Feeling so terrible !

While searching for some documents, my brother found a poem in her diary which he shared over WhatsApp family group. I am once again sharing it with my friends.
Another facet of mother none of us knew earlier.

(Written on Facebook wall on  21 Jan,2015)

You can contact Kamaljit at kamaljitmedhi1975@gmail.com