
‘Anyone who says that sunshine brings happiness has never danced in the rain’
Rains have always been special for me. There is something about the pitter-patter of drops that draws me in.
Back when I was a kid, I would often sit in the balcony, watching a storm unfold, trying to weave a story into it. Or I would sit at my table, observing the drops glide down the window pane as I penned down my thoughts on paper.
Rains have become even more significant since I have come to Ahmedabad. They are no longer just miracles of nature. Instead, they have come to reflect important milestones of my journey on campus.
I still remember the first time it rained here. I had been living in the hostel for a little more than a week, struggling to keep up with the fast pace, and more importantly, struggling to fight the loneliness which threatened to engulf me.
I hated being alone. I was always either talking to a friend, or on the phone, or just sitting in the library (right in front of the door where I could see people passing by). I would come back to my room only when I knew that the moment I touched the bed, the world would cease to exist.
Then one day, I was walking, engrossed in my own world thinking about how I would finish some work when I was shaken awake by the first drop of the season. And then it hit me. I had walked all the way to the library, all by myself.
That was the first time when I was truly alone. And yet, I was not so lonely.
A few days later, another bout of rain came. It was a weekend. I had packed my bag and was ready to go to the library for a whole day of studying. It was all planned. But as fate would have it, it was raining so heavily that I had to turn back. My clothes were muddy, I had almost slipped twice — the rain didn’t seem as romantic that day. But things worked out as they always do and one hour later, my friend and I were sitting outside our rooms, relishing some not-so-crisp pakodas with the not-so-warm chai, as the sound of rain meshed with her playlist to set the perfect background.
That was the first time I spent a whole day in my dorm.
I admit that rains are not always so friendly. Yesterday, my dreamy world collided with reality as drains started overflowing, walking became difficult on the waterlogged paths, and mosquitoes took a sudden liking to my blood — you get the picture. I was ready for it to stop and the scorching sun to come back.
But the thing is, I can’t stay angry with the rain for too long. It’s drizzling again. I am sitting in my room — but more out of choice than compulsion. As I write this, I am thinking about the past month and how quickly it has passed by. I am thinking about how my life has changed. How I have changed. How I have started doing things I had never thought I would be able to manage. And how I have probably taken another step towards being the person that I want to become.
Yes, tomorrow work would again threaten to pull me under, but so what?
Today, I AM HAPPY.
And maybe today, campus is finally home.
Originally published at thoughtsperfectlyimperfect.wordpress.com on July 21, 2017.
