Leaving behind...

Over the last year or so there have been many goodbyes. A lot of people, with various tags such as 'friends' or 'batchmates', have reached the end of their journeys at IISc and moved on, in search of new paths. Irrespective of the tags, they have been a part of my journey here and irrespective of whether or not I miss them individually, it is true that each goodbye reminds me that I will be among the last few of 'my lot'; and intensifies the sense of having been left behind. As I prepare for a few more goodbyes in the coming months, I just can't help but imagine myself (with eager anticipation), about a year from now, also ready to move on. Yet, ironically, my mind is caught up in a tug of war, between everything that I want to put behind me and those that I will have to leave behind. I cannot speak for everybody, but at least in my case, I know that when I leave this campus, I shall leave a part of me behind.

There have been problems and flaws, frustrations and injustices, grievances and resentment...and they will continue probably upto the last day that I spend here. But then amidst everything else, this place has been 'home' for almost 7 years now. Its been the kind of place, which has given me a sense of relieved 'homecoming' each time I walked in through the gates into the familar streets and old buildings, after time spent out in the city or elsewhere. It's been the kind of place, where a long brisk walk along the canopied roads, has often calmed me down and helped to dissolve bouts of overwhelming anger and helplessness. A place, where the soothing power of nature permeates, inspite of the bustle of human activity. It's been a place, where I have walked back to my room, many a late night, with a steaming cup of tea, and gladly listening to the crickets chorusing all around me. Most importantly, it's been THE place where I first tasted total independence in every sense of the term, realized what it is to be completely responsible for myself and my needs, and also received my first salary! The place, where I made a few true friends, obtained a better understanding of myself, my strengths and weaknesses, of what really matters to me, of how I want to be...and more importantly, how I don't want to be.

So while I look forward to a new phase of life beyond this campus, counting not days or weeks, but months; at the same time I slowly prepare myself to leave all of this behind...