Being Thankful

Even as I gasped and struggled in the waters,memories of me asking
mother as to why someone who didn't know swimming would go near a
water body flashed through my mind.My tone had been condescending and
dismissive of their ‘foolishness’.Mom of course was more worldly wise
and besides explaining that thing called ‘fate’ she cautioned me
against speaking ill of the dead.

I sat mum for three hours straight even as my friends played the
cricket match we had set out to.I had been rescued by a classmate and
how I felt for the rest of the day cannot be put in words.That
evening,even as my mom said a small prayer choking with tears and
hugged me,remorse and thankfulness weren't mere adjectives anymore.I
had felt death up close and personal.

One night,11 years later,I was driving all agog with excitement that
being my first time on a highway.

Surrounded by fumes from trucks and the dust floating around,I decided
to get the visor of my helmet down.It was all smooth till the traffic
remained sluggish.An open road ensured higher speeds and cruising at
speeds well above 60 kmph,I was dazzled by the glare of the headlights
from a row of trucks coming from the opposite direction.A high beam
from an incoming vehicle reflected by the glass of the visor was
something I hadn’t experienced before and I was blinded for a good
five seconds. Even as I applied the brakes instinctively,I could hear
my pillion ask if
everything was fine,blissfully unaware of what had happened.As I
started the bike again and the
headlight flashed ahead,I stared at a huge mound of freshly excavated
soil.Another 10 secs at the same speed and we could've been
history.Shaken,I covered the rest of the journey with my visor up and
the speed below 40.

God obviously wanted to hammer a few lessons into me it seems coz
something similar transpired a month back.

Travelling on a chopper with a VVIP,I was all snug and comfy catching
up on lost sleep when I first smelt smoke.I looked around.Nobody else
seemed to have smelt it and they were all napping.

“You’re travelling with someone so important.Everything must’ve been
cross-checked at least thrice.Stop being silly.” I was trying to
convince myself back to sleep when the helicopter made a strange
growling sound and sparks flew from the left part of the roof.By then
others had also noticed it coz the smoke had grown too strong to
ignore.Miles away from land,surrounded by water all around,I feared
the inevitable.I remembered my parents and siblings and said a small
prayer for them lest that be my last prayer ever.A few anxious moments
later,the crew announced we were going back to base.

I survived the ordeal and that incident made me recollect the previous
two incidents where perhaps God was sending me a sign which I just
couldn’t catch.

When faced with imminent death all I could wish for was the happiness
of my parents and siblings.Perhaps a sign that family comes
first.Always.

Being a little thankful for what we’ve been blessed with is something
we often miss out on.While asking for more is fine,remembering to be
grateful for what’s already ours is perhaps more
important.

As Lemony Snicket puts it beautifully “It is a miracle if you have
true friends,and it is a miracle if you have enough food to eat,and it
is a miracle if you get to spend your days and evenings doing whatever
you like to do and the holiday season-like all the other seasons-is a
good time not only to tell stories of miracles,but to think of the
miracles in your own life,and be grateful for them.”

I seem to have encountered quite a few miracles in my life and I’m
thankful..immensely thankful.

True...Ain't it?

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bol de...bol de...sochta hai kya??...hum agar hote toh bol diya hota ;)

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