The Inevitable

May, 2004: Staring outside the window of our golden coloured Indica, looking sorrowfully at the beautiful Blue Mountains being left behind, I realized that I wasn’t ready for this- not ready to leave Shimla, not ready to say goodbye to my friends, not ready to abandon this safe and secure domain that my parents and I had built around ourselves. However, I didn’t have a choice.

Exactly a week before our departure from Shimla, my father came home one evening, excited and animated. He declared that we were going to move to Delhi as soon as possible. At that time, I thought he meant that we were going on a holiday, and so my spirits were high. It was later that my mother explained to me, that we would be leaving Shimla forever, and that there would be no turning back. The news hit me like a violent storm, robbing me of my friends, my happiness, and my security. But my reaction was a simple ‘okay’ as I tried hard to fight back my tears.

So after that one week of packing away our stuff into intangible memories, and looking all around us to get a last glance of our little world, we hit the road. Sitting in the front seat of the car, feeling a wave of nausea hit me, thanks to the long, winding roads leading us out of Shimla, I stole a quick glance at my parents. I could see that I wasn’t the only one upset and unprepared there. We were wrapped in a blanket of silence, as we braced ourselves for this inevitable end- the end of our glorious time in Shimla.

After travelling several kilometers, as we entered Delhi, the honking of the cars filled my ears. The commotion was unbearable for me, and I had to remind myself that I wasn’t in the serene and beautiful hill station any longer. The thing which scared me most about Delhi, was the school that I was about to seek admission into. The idea of adjusting to completely new surroundings, circumscribed by strangers, intimidated me. However, again, I didn’t have a choice.

So, on a sunny Monday morning, I de boarded the school bus, and for the first time, set foot on the premises of Gyan Bharati School. It was a big campus and the buildings were painted in red. As I entered the main building, nervous and frightened, a dozen pair of eyes turned to stare at me. I remember wearing casuals on the first day, as my uniform was yet to arrive. Nevertheless, fighting to put up a brave face, I entered my class: 4-B. Again, the unwanted attention! Avoiding everyone’s gaze, I took a seat in the second row, preparing myself to start afresh. Unfortunately, the first day proved to be scary and highly unproductive.  Since I had joined school in the middle of the session, I was completely at sea when the teaching began. So, when my mother asked me about my day in school, all I said was, “I’m glad it’s over.” However, slowly and steadily, I managed to find a place for myself in the school, as my interaction with the students and teachers increased. Things changed when I met Rimita and Sukanya for the first time, who, today, are my two best friends. I didn’t particularly like them in the beginning and neither did they. However, gradually, they became the two most important persons of my life, and school became the center of my existence. I met Geetashree in class 7, and another name got added to my list of BFFs.

As I started adjusting to the school’s atmosphere, my perception of Delhi underwent a change. Earlier, for me, Delhi was a huge geographical space, teeming with people and vehicles, all scurrying around in a state of utter confusion and chaos. There was something about Delhi which made me call it absurd, and nothing ever made sense to me. However, as I started to gain acquaintance of, not only the city, but also its people, the mist finally started to clear away. Everything started falling in place, and I was finally able to make sense of the absurdity. To my surprise, I had actually started liking Delhi! One of the reasons behind it, was my school. I was in love with my school and friends. So now when I think back, it occurs to me that my father’s decision to move, was not so bad after all.

Change is something which people look forward to, but are scared of, at the same time. Whatever the case, change is inevitable. It was my experience of moving from Shimla to Delhi which taught me this. It is true that every good thing always has to come to an end. This end is inevitable, and brings along with it, a lot of unpleasantness and sorrow. But what people should know, is that with the end of one good thing, there is always a start of another. If the sun sets down today, it will come up tomorrow, won’t it? Similarly as my lovely days in Shimla were nearing an end, lots of wonderful surprises awaited me in Delhi, unveiling themselves slowly and steadily.

I was very attached to Shimla, and moving to Delhi was never easy for me.  But sometimes you just need to let go. The sun has to set down every day, but the dusk always promises a new dawn. It leaves behind memories of its existence, leading us into an ocean of nostalgia. So just clutching on to your present will in no way help you develop a lovely future and beautiful memories. Time is always on the run, and we need to catch up to it. I know it is always easier said than done, but I have gone through this, and, trust me, it’s worth a try. So move with the tide of time, as, every inevitable end gives birth to a promising beginning.