‘Driving’ you crazy

It’s so easy to obtain a driving license in India; if you have money, you don’t even have to step into a car and the driving license will be delivered at your address. I never realized how important having a driving license is until a few weeks after I landed in Dubai. Here, driving license is like a precious, rare stone – damn expensive and extremely hard to get. And my struggle started more than a month back and I finally finished my classes and passed the garage parking, signal and assessment tests, and am now waiting for the ‘big test’ – the final test. Am I tensed? Yes, I am. Since I know it’s not gonna be a cakewalk, I am being a bit circumspect. Nothing comes easy in life, so I am preparing myself to face the big challenge and be successful. I need good luck, a lot of it and I expect all of you to shower luck on me. Thanks for that everyone, in advance.

Patience – what’s that?

So the countdown has just begun. ‘The big day’ is less than four months away. On the one hand, I am trying to calm down my mind, while on the other hand, my heartbeats simply refuse to slow down their pace… Yes, waiting for something is the toughest thing on earth to do, especially something as ‘special’ as your wedding, and what adds to the excitement is the fact that the bride is my long time girl friend and one of my best friends. I think that’s what makes this wedding so special and the wait more excruciating – she is my best friend. I can share anything with her and on a day out, we can both behave and enjoy like friends do. That’s what I love about this relationship. And I don’t want this equation to be disturbed once we get married. I want her to be my friend first (like she is now) and then a good wife. I am sure she understands the importance of being friends first more than I do and that’s exactly what makes her special.
In the meanwhile, my persistent efforts to wait ‘patiently’ for my wedding continue to bear no fruit and my heartbeats seem to ask me innocently, “Patience? What’s that?”

Finally the wait is over, or is it yet?

It all began on a beautiful Sunday evening in the chilly month of December 2007, when two strangers met for the first time, with the smiling Lord Ayyappa benevolently showering his blessings on us in the background. And in no time, the thought dawned on us that we were destined to meet and be together. Or else, how could you explain the presence of the Almighty when two individuals meet for the first time? Probably, that’s what you call destiny. No matter how hard you try to evade it, destiny will always follow you like Vodafone network, always staying by your side.

After just over 18 months of relentless struggle, eventually the goddess of luck decided to give us a chance and we grabbed it with both hands. 7th of June, 2009, probably, was the day we had been waiting for, or so we thought. But, the moment this day came to end, our wait for the BIG DAY began, almost immediately. So, as you would have realized by now, there is no respite for us, not as yet.

Special days always look special, don’t they? The day of our engagement appeared special as I looked out of the window of my third-floor hotel room. The morning looked hazy, with creamy white clouds adding to the uniqueness of that Sunday morning.

It all got over so soon – the crowd, the ceremony, the feast, the cocktail party followed by the family lunch next day, and my heart was heavy again. The thought of leaving my love and family – both new and old –, even though only for a few months, was devastating. Tears often show you the depth of love others have for you. And as I was walking into the departure terminal of the Mumbai international airport, I didn’t know how to react. I wanted to look back, but I couldn’t, because the teary eyes of my loved ones were hard for me to put up with. The glossy interiors of the airport didn’t seem attractive, as my mind was focused only on the group of people standing outside comprising of my love, my dearest friend, my family including my new papa and mom and brother in law – each one of them appeared to me to be ‘love personified’. When you have so many people around who love you, you can’t help saying, “Life is beautiful, isn’t it?”.