Life is a perplexing puzzle. It throws curve balls at you at a regular intervals. Thats what makes life interesting. In my case though, it was a bouncer.. I was consistently spending my weekends, with an intent to hit the clubs and make my couch stricken life into a social dream. Alas! Lethargy conquers all and brings you down on your knees, slowly allowing the days to dissipate, and dissolves the time like a burning candle. I loved the fact that sometimes life gives you a push in the right direction, forcing you to take decisions which makes a lot of sense. I imagine if it was a separate entity, it would be cursing me to waste its resources. So the push came in the form of playing Cricket. A game I have been loving, following and learning since I was a kid. This was the first time I was playing with a leather ball.
I was to be attired in pads, thigh guards, helmet and some other guards. It was a feeling of extreme suffocation and happiness all wrapped in a single package. I slowly hopped in front of the wickets. Tried positioning myself into a stance. I looked all uncoordinated and unbalanced. The bowler was waiting for me to get ready. He looks through you trying to dismantle the 3 sticks behind you, oblivious to the fact that between the sticks and the bowler stands a lone soldier wielding a 3 feet bat. I was jubilated with my first defense, but after that it was all downhill. I could not judge where my hands were, or where my feet were, it was all a combination of soft foam and skin. I connected a few shots, but thats about it. I then decided its time for me to wield the bowl and torment a few batsmen, giving me an opportunity to extract my pound of flesh. The devil inside me was awakened, I moved to the dark side. I began rushing towards the batsmen and bowling at the stumps, I did not see the batsmen standing there, he was a entity which I had eliminated from the realms of my reality. I bowled well. I was satisfied. I had tamed my hunger. I started realising I was going to play for a team. All the images of the past stared raising its head.. The time when I belonged to a team, the time when we competed against neighborhood colonies. It was a Wonder Years moment, sans Winnie Cooper.. Life is a perplexing puzzle, and I am still solving it.. Adiós for now..