God saves our family twice in less than 10 days (contd...)

(contd.) I knew I’m not so good at swimming, so I took all the caution to swim and play only in the 4ft zone. I played and swam there almost for all the time I was in the pool, but only when we are about to wrap up and come out of the pool I wanted to just experience board diving. Two diving boards are there, one very high one and the other of a low height. I chose the small one to be on the safer side. However the water depth beneath both the dive boards is 12ft. Not many were there at the diving zone, apart from me just three more one of them being my PM, Venkat. Venkat is a good swimmer and he is relaxing on the pool pavement, I just informed him that I’ve come to experience the diving. He said ‘Ok, go ahead’. I closed my nose and dived into the 12ft zone from the board. And having swam like for quite some time in the 4ft zone, whichever energy I had, got consumed and phoof I couldn’t swim even 3ft to reach the bank. If the depth is less I could have at least walked to the bank, but its 12ft and I saw myself drowning. I wriggled a lot and tried to come above water surface two times, first time I could wave to two other persons on the pavement before I sunk again into the water, but they didn’t get the message that I’m drowning and began to discuss among themselves some hot topic. The next time I used all my energies and came up to the surface and this time could just barely say ‘Venkaaa…’ and wave to him to rescue me before I sank into the water again. I’m not sure if Venkat understood my situation and here I was drowning deeper and deeper. The water around didn’t seem like a pleasurable item anymore, I envisioned in it a hidden ghost trying to choke me to death. I am out of my breath and even gulped a few water gulps. All this happened in a few seconds. Just at the moment when I began to repent for my foolish decision of testing troubled waters, thinking of all the sorry I’m going to leave behind in the hearts of my kith, kin and beloved ones two hands thrust me up by my shoulder. Hope sprang, it could only be Venkat my subconscious hinted. And it was exactly he. As alert as he usually is, he grasped the vague signs I threw while I surfaced up the second time and dived into the pool and swam to the location I was and towed me to the bank. Thanks Venkat! Thanks God. These incidents only reveal more how insecure life in this world is. If anything should come for our rescue, I feel it should be because of our goodness. The more smile we try to get into hapless faces, the more would God love to bring smile into ours. I’d definitely bring a smile in the orphans faces the coming Diwali day, if not for anything, at least as a token of revere to what God did for our family.

God saves our family twice in less than 10 days

Is water a pleasurable thing to play with? May be yes, if its a manageable quantity. And definitely not if its in large volume and unmanageable. I sincerely feel sorry for the hapless lives that drowned away in the Delta Fast Passenger mishap that happened in the wee hours of last Saturday. My feelings are with those of the kith and kin of the people who lost lives or remain stranded. Our family has been showered His divine grace or else my dad is almost set to board the Delta Fast Passenger last Friday night. Had my mom not stopped the attendar to get the train ticket, surely a major set back should have occured in my family. Thank God. This is only the second in the series of "close slips" from waters wrath for our family members. The first being the way I almost made my way past this world on 21st October, the Friday of week before last. 21st October is the d-day for which I toiled a lot. Its the day of OOCTO picnic for which I was the key organizer. Every single preparation was taken care of, the pre-event preparations were a hit and in the same enthu we landed in the venue (I did take care of arrangements at the venue too). First place to visit there was the swimming pool. Very few got into the pool, and I'm one of those enthusiastic few...(continued)

Karan Story

The sun slowly set behind the distant hills, the ambient lighting began to fade off. The children didn't realize they were playing ballgame ('pitchi banti') since 2hrs. Only when their eye pupils complained about ball not being visible did they realize that its time to hurry or else house warden may have a good lecture prepared to boom into their ears. They still had their baths pending and its not a quick dip into some bath tub kind of thing for Karan. Though the stream, on the banks of which they are so long playing, has a constant flow of fresh water he would not accept a dip in the stream as his bath. He took out his plastic mug and quickly dug out a small pit ('chelan') into which fresh water oozed slowly. Not-so-patient friends of Karan had a quick dip in the stream and called it a bath and set out to the hostel which is a good 2KM from the stream bank. By the time a bucket full of water oozed from the pit all of Karan's friends including Sreek left the place. The creaking crickets sound became prominent. Its just Karan alone on the stream bank.
For a 11 year old lad the situation is certainly not a desired one. Karan hastened up his chores, dressed up and set out hurriedly towards the hostel. Only after going about a quarter mile did he realize that he forgot his locker keys at the bank...
(to be contd...)