Little do people know about what goes behind the Mask of Tranquillity!
Under the false impression that their wards will be taken care of, they drop them into The Ocean. The Ocean sees all alike, they say. For 3 years they have no reason to believe otherwise.
Then, one fine day, the journey, or the Trip as we call it, to the Biggest Island in the Ocean began.
No doubt, the Island is big and fruitful. Little can it be compared to our own islands. We found only the abundance of greenery, on our first expedition on getting there.
We suspected nothing. Not because we are inferior to the inhabitants of the Big Island, but because of our ignorance.
Well, we had all come to get aboard a *Cog! And we ain’t thoroughbreds...This is how the whole procedure of getting into a Cog went about (or goes..cos this ain’t gonna change in a long time)...We were all let out into the ocean which seemed to be placid and serene. We moved in our respective shoals under the aegis of our leader.
Day 1: Sun was shining brightly. The first Cog that is to take us ashore was coming today. My group were the fortunate/unfortunate ones to take the first dip in the waters..a pass in the preliminary swim is necessary to go out into the vast expanse of the Ocean which is the playground. Well most got through. There were few of us who didn’t make it to the playground.
We were, without doubt, sad! Sad is a mild word to use under the circumstances..but still...My fellow mates who made to the playground, had their wits tested. They had to wait of course, till the next day eve to know whether they were in or not!!! Those of us who didn’t make it...were preparing to get aboard the next Cog in line...
Day 2: Day 2 passed without many happenings till the evening. I began to sense the fluttering of butterflies in ma fellow mates' stomachs...the results..anytime now. Some started pacing up and down..which obviously didn’t help..so they went to enquire...And then they came..most cleared....but few didn t..they looked sad..the Cog, they said, had funny ways of getting people.... Alas... Tough luck!
And so some got aboard the Cog! Still more to go....
Day 3: We were all expecting the worst from this Cog...! They surprised most..I got in..suddenly I, who was to head on the next Cog in line, had my plans altered...the mission was to get On board this cog..Anyhow! We tested each others' wits...part of the training...for the D- Day tomorrow...
Day 4: Well...I ll make it short........ It was full of surprises and mixed emotions all around..the final list was announced after a long wait..that seemed like years...I got Aboard this Cog !..well..later on...we began suspecting when things began to smell...but there were no evidences....the day passed.
Day 5: Now, till today, we did feel, something was going on..but we dismissed it as a hallucination cooked up by our sadness and anxiety...but when one of our mates was "shot" in the knee..rendering him helpless and handicapped...and others not even as good as him made it to the Ocean,we knew it..The Cog had some Big Island Pros on board....we tried treading the path that was once overlooked..the path which led to the shadows of the villains...we were now sure of foul play...we were in an Alien Camp..!!
Treachery at its Worst!! Cos some of the Big Islanders also, were made Scapegoats.....!
Day 6: We tried voicing, or at least enquiring....our cries were silenced by our own leader..he said our hands were tied..and that we had walked into a booby trap..for the benefit of a few of our own men..we kept quiet..!! Lies were spread to curtail the few of us who had got to the Ocean...Our mates who were there to help the Cogs, knew what was to be done..they turned the tables and went to the extend of surprising the Devil...thanks to them...some survived..we did celebrate when we bled in silence !! We were clearly the minions now...but we grew stronger! Those who were shot were ready to fight...!!!!
Day 7: Clearly shown on our faces, the anger and despair...they played safe this time around...Though a lame duck...he did fire a bulls eye...now we knew how to take it on..we worked our asses out...it was a Do or Die task at hand...those few of us who stayed till our fellow men got aboard...tried our best to help...
Day 8: We did our best...They couldn't do much than give it to us....those of us who had fallen overboard...made it this time...we celebrated...!!! The Hunted took the role of the Hunter...
Still there remained a bunch of us who couldn't t get aboard a Cog...and those who were brave enough to stay and take it on..are getting aboard.....This way we are still fighting a LOSING battle...for the Benefit of those who will follow us into this BIG ISLAND in the years to come..until..by some twist of fate...we get to bring these Cogs to our end of the Ocean !!!
*P.S: A Cog...is a small sailing vessel!!!
Under the false impression that their wards will be taken care of, they drop them into The Ocean. The Ocean sees all alike, they say. For 3 years they have no reason to believe otherwise.
Then, one fine day, the journey, or the Trip as we call it, to the Biggest Island in the Ocean began.
No doubt, the Island is big and fruitful. Little can it be compared to our own islands. We found only the abundance of greenery, on our first expedition on getting there.
We suspected nothing. Not because we are inferior to the inhabitants of the Big Island, but because of our ignorance.
Well, we had all come to get aboard a *Cog! And we ain’t thoroughbreds...This is how the whole procedure of getting into a Cog went about (or goes..cos this ain’t gonna change in a long time)...We were all let out into the ocean which seemed to be placid and serene. We moved in our respective shoals under the aegis of our leader.
Day 1: Sun was shining brightly. The first Cog that is to take us ashore was coming today. My group were the fortunate/unfortunate ones to take the first dip in the waters..a pass in the preliminary swim is necessary to go out into the vast expanse of the Ocean which is the playground. Well most got through. There were few of us who didn’t make it to the playground.
We were, without doubt, sad! Sad is a mild word to use under the circumstances..but still...My fellow mates who made to the playground, had their wits tested. They had to wait of course, till the next day eve to know whether they were in or not!!! Those of us who didn’t make it...were preparing to get aboard the next Cog in line...
Day 2: Day 2 passed without many happenings till the evening. I began to sense the fluttering of butterflies in ma fellow mates' stomachs...the results..anytime now. Some started pacing up and down..which obviously didn’t help..so they went to enquire...And then they came..most cleared....but few didn t..they looked sad..the Cog, they said, had funny ways of getting people.... Alas... Tough luck!
And so some got aboard the Cog! Still more to go....
Day 3: We were all expecting the worst from this Cog...! They surprised most..I got in..suddenly I, who was to head on the next Cog in line, had my plans altered...the mission was to get On board this cog..Anyhow! We tested each others' wits...part of the training...for the D- Day tomorrow...
Day 4: Well...I ll make it short........ It was full of surprises and mixed emotions all around..the final list was announced after a long wait..that seemed like years...I got Aboard this Cog !..well..later on...we began suspecting when things began to smell...but there were no evidences....the day passed.
Day 5: Now, till today, we did feel, something was going on..but we dismissed it as a hallucination cooked up by our sadness and anxiety...but when one of our mates was "shot" in the knee..rendering him helpless and handicapped...and others not even as good as him made it to the Ocean,we knew it..The Cog had some Big Island Pros on board....we tried treading the path that was once overlooked..the path which led to the shadows of the villains...we were now sure of foul play...we were in an Alien Camp..!!
Treachery at its Worst!! Cos some of the Big Islanders also, were made Scapegoats.....!
Day 6: We tried voicing, or at least enquiring....our cries were silenced by our own leader..he said our hands were tied..and that we had walked into a booby trap..for the benefit of a few of our own men..we kept quiet..!! Lies were spread to curtail the few of us who had got to the Ocean...Our mates who were there to help the Cogs, knew what was to be done..they turned the tables and went to the extend of surprising the Devil...thanks to them...some survived..we did celebrate when we bled in silence !! We were clearly the minions now...but we grew stronger! Those who were shot were ready to fight...!!!!
Day 7: Clearly shown on our faces, the anger and despair...they played safe this time around...Though a lame duck...he did fire a bulls eye...now we knew how to take it on..we worked our asses out...it was a Do or Die task at hand...those few of us who stayed till our fellow men got aboard...tried our best to help...
Day 8: We did our best...They couldn't do much than give it to us....those of us who had fallen overboard...made it this time...we celebrated...!!! The Hunted took the role of the Hunter...
Still there remained a bunch of us who couldn't t get aboard a Cog...and those who were brave enough to stay and take it on..are getting aboard.....This way we are still fighting a LOSING battle...for the Benefit of those who will follow us into this BIG ISLAND in the years to come..until..by some twist of fate...we get to bring these Cogs to our end of the Ocean !!!
*P.S: A Cog...is a small sailing vessel!!!
22 comments:
AWESOME MATE!!
Wel..wud never forget the days n wat we went thru...cudnt have wrote it in a better way...hats off to ya!!;-)
sexy...really really sexy dude....
i neva knew u cud rit so well...
the best real-life story i hv read in the recent times.....partly cos we all play an important role in it...
and partly cos the evnts dat took place on the Big Island has lefta deep cut on my soul...
moments when i had to gamble wit the life of my own frnds...moments wen i had to choose btwn my own soulmates....
and yes as deepthi rightly said ill never evr frgt those moments when i saw my mates rendered helpless...and i cudnt do much to help them....
but i here by take an oath dat
'wit wat ever might i hv ill fight & wont rest until i get those Cogs to our side of the Ocean and prove to the world dat ours is a more greener pasture and given a fair chance...nobody can beat us.'
and to the comin generations....
'u r my only hope....hope ull live up to it.'
hats off to u buddy!!!
keep up the gud wrk...
Wat a metaphor !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
gr8 thinkin ..........
ll wats 2 say the better way of puttin bitter things outta mind..........
as srini said lets hope 4 t best!!!
neways had gr8 time readin........
truly hats off 2 ya........
awesome dude... real kewl... u rite real well ya... tho whts dis thing bout da booby trap n all tht... couldnt catch up on all tht...
..........UNIQUE..............
while readin the "GLIMPSE" i found myself bac in ettimadi...in the IT block,halls,guest house ,the lawn,the hostel corridors........COULD SEE EVERTHIN ONCE MORE LIVE.........there is a freshness in the way u write......u made me SAIL............ ...........the way u narrated is awesome.............
WAITIN TO READ MORE FROM U.........
woooooooow!!tat # took me on a ride bac to tat ***beautiful hell once again.. Bash!!and gotta say man,$$superb yaaar..and damnnn kewll d way u did d entire episode..^^^Let dis 'cog'ent narration of a 'cog'noscenti lik ya,..'cog'itate a 'cog' full of 'cog'nizance in d minds of our lovin juniors bfor de aboard deir 'cog' d comin years...^^^
Really Nice..SO true..I guess the hardest thing is to see your friends suffer and standing besides with nothing to offer except the words and the tears..Its the helpless feelings tht makes u wanna do more but sad as its true as our leader said we have been led into a booby trap..Hope everything gets well..
Hey that was really an A W E S O M E stuff... excellent language, n the ocean-island allegory was ...............( i cant find a word to fill this blank). It had a unique style of a real writer.. The experiences everyone faced wher well written .. these r days in college life we wud never forget, the days wher some wer happy on one side 4 making it 2 the island n sad on othr side 4 our dear ones dint ....its a very hard situation wher we find difficulty 2 cheer up our frndz...i hope all of them will make it ....let srini's oath become true...
keep writing such good stuffs... especially such real life experiences.... once again HATS off 2 u man.....
Hey suraj.. i enjoyyed reading ur blog..its simply fantastic.. especially the way u hav put things in..... the COG cruising its way to the BIG ISLAND!!!... your writing is evocative in all ways.. You definitely have a lot of talent with this!!!
Really looking forward to more creative works frm u.. keep going man...
oh my..UNBELIEVABLE!! did u really write this? actually i don know how to comment.. superb work! well crafted.. very imaginatinative.. very innovative.. struck d rite chord at places!
I cud feel a lump in my throat as i was readin thru.. like reliving those tough days wer i had to use every ounce of courage i had in me..
so keep writing.... u definitely got loads of stuff in u!!
........THATS MY BUDDDDYYY......
TOUGH 2 BELIEVE THT I SHARED A ROOM WITH THIS KURMA AND NEVER NOTICED THT THIS GUY CUD REALLY PAINT A PICTURE THIS WEL.....
THE HIGHLIGHT OF MY TRIP AT ETTIMADAI IS THT..WE FOUGHT THIS BATTLE TOG...4GET IT/MECH/CS/EC..WE PULLED DOWN THE WALLS B/W OUR CLASSES AND STOOD AS ONE..AND THT 4 ME....MY FRIENDS...WILL ALWAYS BE THE MEMORY OF ETTI-2007...
AT THE SAME TIME..LETS NOT 4GET THOSE SOULS...WHO HAVE YET 2 REACH ASHORE...LETS PRAY...AND PRAY SHALL WE..4 THEM TO REACH OUR SIDE....
AND WE SHOULD PROMISE OURSELVES THAT THE CCR ROOM ISNT A THING OF THE PAST ANYMORE...WE ARE GOING TO BE AN INTERGRAL PART OF THE JUNIORS TRAINING PROGRAMME...GIVING THEM THE WEAPONS TO SURVIVE..TRAINING THEM TO SHOW NO MERCY...AND YES...AND TO CONQUER THE PLACE...WHERE WE LEFT UNCONQURED...
AND...LETS NOT TELL THEM..HOW TO DEAL WITH SUCCESS...HAPPINESS...SENSE OF ACHIEVEMENT........LETS TELL TEACH THEM...TO DEAL WITH FAILURE..WITH SORROW...WITH INCOMPLETENESS...WITH PAIN AND FEELING OF BEING HURT...COS THATS WHAT WAS WE FACED OVER THERE...
PROUD OF U KURMA...ITS A JOB LEFT INCOMPLETE..U HAVE TAKEN AN OATH...TO TELL OUR STORY....AND LET THE THE STORY GO ON.....
WOULD LIKE TO QUOTE A SAYING...WHICH IS SO TRUE IN THE VALLEY OF DARKNESS....
" TO REACH THE STARS YOU DREAM ABOUT....
YOU HAVE 2 BE IN DARKNESS....."
THANK U DA.....
haahaa...im soooo happpy someone put thz down !!! HATS OFF TO U BUD !!! i hate dat shity damn 'botanical garden' !!! AMRITAPURI ROCKS !!!
Yo man yoooooo!!!!!! That is one hell of a writin!! whoooo hoooo... I can c the spirit man.. Mind 'BOG'gling .. U man in the 'COG'. Hats oFf mate!!
heh buddy classic work....nice way of puttin up hw gud those son of a ****were&how wel were treated.just one small sugeestion tat i have is tat ya could have been more open in your sarcasm...for me atleast it sems a bit toooo dignified and i certainly dnt thk those ppl do deserve it...its like wen ya have to hit a nail hard do it the "hardest possible way" and not the "hardest way ya possibly can"....coz tat can give a much more gr8er effect....knowin ya i know ya'll put this down as a scorpion way of appraochin things and not ya style....STILLLLLLL....dosnt harm to be a bit bold and outrite in ya approach...newys lovely work dude...keep going...
Yo Suraj!!!.... i donno wat 2 tell u man... it is just TOOOO GOOD... Who thought in da whole wide world u cud write like this...well its not a too much of a big surprise...u hav real good language but i dint know it went up 2 such a level...COOL... CONGRATULATIONS...KEEP IT UP
n sorry 4 being almost da last one 2 read it...
n well...like all da others hav said... Hats off 2 u buddy!!! Continue writing like this ok... dont lose da talent...
from a fellow blogger n thinker....
fantabulous methodolgy of puttin words together....requires immense talent,thinkin n on a more elaborate note,command over the language..as an author,u've proved urself to be capable...
wel,at amrita,the freedom of expression is curbd n when u go outta town to the sister institution,ur regarded as untouchable..thts wat all of us go thru...
as a person who can proably see..been there n done tht in terms of sailin,wel i must say..ur ritin made me reminiscent of those times..
addin on a personal note,ettimadai actually gave me somethin gud in life ;)...keep guessin...
til pigs fly,
sab
wat is this all abt????
well sai.this is abt the ettimadai placement saga........
well thamburan really nice work.....well lets be realistic we must expect some "host favours".....all that amrita kudumban has a extend...i think we were lacking in many areas and we must correct them...hope that our juniors will have a proper "campus" recruitment.....
grt....writtn well....eye opener esp 4 dose who r gonna take a dip in d ocean nxt...datz us..
Hey buddy,
Before commenting about your brilliance, let me first tell you why this blog is one of the best.
Its hard to blend our feelings, honest inner feelings into a language, and more so, to get your thought on to us, but the sincerity shows in the words da...
Good that you have made it an analogy, that day you had said about these plans, nice to see it happen.
What I liked the most?
"A Cog...is a small sailing vessel!!!"
You have shed light on the "Inconvenient Truth", lets hope we can do something about it..
Anyway, now coming back to the blog's author,
This is just the beginning. You may not realize but you have an art, i should say a scientific art ( dont ask me what it means ) was just trying to replace the word talent, coz I dont want you to be satisfied with this one blog, its great, you have reached the crest of nilgiris... mount everest is still there. All the best in your journey..
All the comments have mentioned your brilliance, dint wanna quote them again, but you deserve it...
Certainly. And I have faced it. Let's discuss this question. Here or in PM.
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