I recently received a mail from my friend, in which she had wished me for my birthday and reminded me of our birthday celebration during our final year in college. She had also mentioned how happy those days were and how terribly she missed it in her current stature as a mother of a two year old. That mail took me back in time as I remembered the day.
Usually the School/College would be closed on the day of my birthday and I would spend it with my family. I was always envious of those who got to celebrate their birthday during the school days. However during my final year in college, It fell on a working day on the last week of our college days. The spirit of friendship was quite high in our group, as we had only a few more days of togetherness.
I was hyping my own birthday among my friends. Giving it an extra push every now and then with questions like ‘Hey, have you decided on what you should gift me?’ I made sure that it was an eventful day ! anyways, they also got the message.
I had bought myself a dress for a princely sum of Rs.838 thus adding to my wardrobe, the costliest of the lot .The day came. I donned the great dress and felt so pretty. I went to the bus stop smiling and glowing. As soon as I entered the class, I saw my friend hide something from me. I asked her, ‘Hey is that my present ? good ! keep that a surprise’ She called me hopeless and handed it over to me. It was a handbag and I liked it.
Then I went around asking people if they were going to come to my house as a surprise! Lots of them did. We had a rocking time. We sang, we danced, we made our neighbors wonder what was wrong and we made merry. I cut 4 cakes in different places, with different groups of friends.
In my house, my sister and my cousin had baked a cake for me.
They were also the ones who poured water over my head when my face was all covered with cream. One of my friends (the one mentioned in the first paragraph) stayed back at home. We went to a movie with my sister and my cousin and then to a restaurant.
That was my greatest birthday !
The dress now sleeps in my wardrobe, just a memory, for I no longer wear it.
Guess I have left that spirit behind and call it growth !
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Monday, May 14, 2007
Clumsy ? Me?
When someone at work asked me ‘Are U always this Clumsy’? I should have been infuriated and not surprised myself with the reply ‘Well… not so much’.
The story starts with me entering a new project in a entirely new place and an entirely new role. With a lot of grumbling on being forced out of my comfort zone, I was finally beginning to learn the needs of the new role. The most important need being meeting with various people on the higher rung in the organization.
On the day of my first meeting, I entered the conference room , conducted myself with utmost care, made sure I said what needs to be said, observed the happenings, took the necessary notes. I did the right thing in the right way (or so I thought). The meeting ended and I was so happy with myself, sure that I had made quite an impression. With a smile I started walking faster to show the World that I ruled it and suddenly with a ‘THUD’ I felt myself hit the floor. I had tripped on a the telephone wire that stretched from the wall to the table about a foot from the floor. And that exactly is the way, all the people in that room are going to remember me for the rest of their lives.
The story does not end there. After a week, I again walked into the meeting room fully aware of the importance of conducting myself in the right way. I wanted to show the World, the other day was an accident and I was articulate after all ! I was a couple of minutes late and all the seats were taken. My boss (good naturedly) suggested I take the seat nearest the door, to avoid further mishaps. I caught a colleague give me the ‘I remember last what happened last week’ Grin. A little agitated, I pulled out the chair nearest to me and sat. The meeting progressed and one unfortunate moment a fact struck me. I was sitting on the Chair’s edge while everyone else in the room was leaning on their chair’s back.. I realized that my body language suggested that I was tensed and lacked confidence (only for someone who knew the nuances of body language and cared). I was keen on sending the right vibes. That was my last thought, before I landed on the floor with a loud ‘CRACK’.
That was a broken Chair.
Now, Should I be wondering at the conversation in the Top ?
Jay (1-May-07)
The story starts with me entering a new project in a entirely new place and an entirely new role. With a lot of grumbling on being forced out of my comfort zone, I was finally beginning to learn the needs of the new role. The most important need being meeting with various people on the higher rung in the organization.
On the day of my first meeting, I entered the conference room , conducted myself with utmost care, made sure I said what needs to be said, observed the happenings, took the necessary notes. I did the right thing in the right way (or so I thought). The meeting ended and I was so happy with myself, sure that I had made quite an impression. With a smile I started walking faster to show the World that I ruled it and suddenly with a ‘THUD’ I felt myself hit the floor. I had tripped on a the telephone wire that stretched from the wall to the table about a foot from the floor. And that exactly is the way, all the people in that room are going to remember me for the rest of their lives.
The story does not end there. After a week, I again walked into the meeting room fully aware of the importance of conducting myself in the right way. I wanted to show the World, the other day was an accident and I was articulate after all ! I was a couple of minutes late and all the seats were taken. My boss (good naturedly) suggested I take the seat nearest the door, to avoid further mishaps. I caught a colleague give me the ‘I remember last what happened last week’ Grin. A little agitated, I pulled out the chair nearest to me and sat. The meeting progressed and one unfortunate moment a fact struck me. I was sitting on the Chair’s edge while everyone else in the room was leaning on their chair’s back.. I realized that my body language suggested that I was tensed and lacked confidence (only for someone who knew the nuances of body language and cared). I was keen on sending the right vibes. That was my last thought, before I landed on the floor with a loud ‘CRACK’.
That was a broken Chair.
Now, Should I be wondering at the conversation in the Top ?
Jay (1-May-07)
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