The Beginning Of the End

The date is surprisingly near. The 27th of March 2010. The date which will mark, for most of us the end of our students’ lives. Of course before that, we have got our exams to tend to, but I have reasons to believe that the professors are considerate and lenient enough not to fail us.
Its close to two years in this well known institute of management in Western India and it seems as if it were just yesterday that I came here with my metal trunk in tow . One of my friends from grad college was accompanying me and I still remember being overawed at the lush green campus and the numerous trees that lined the pathways everywhere. Everything looked like a dream. A dream that I always had and was still finding it tough to believe that, it had finally come true.
The Darpan is out. My batchmates, as also some juniors, have told me what they think of me (shown me the mirror, that’s what darpan is-a mirror). The placement party has been thrown and the dates for the farewell party are being decided. That effectively means that the days are numbered.
They say, memories remain forever. I agree. And it is probably the memories which I take back from here, which will remain with me forever. I have another six of my batchmates joining the same organisation as I am. And till the time we are together, the days spent here will be all we talk of. Then slowly as we move on with our lives, it will be more memories. May be this laptop won’t be there. I will have changed the brand of my cigarette. I will have started taking a bath every morning before office (I seldom bathe before attending classes), I will have started shaving everyday (as against every week now), but every moment spent here will remain and remind me of the era gone by. And probably these memories will be my only companions when I lie in some goddamn hospital, down with cancer, waiting to die.
Its tough to fathom how time has flown by! May be the pressure, which we always found ourselves under, all through our stay here has a part to play. We didn’t really have the time to see the night turning into day. Getting up late in the evening after an exhaustive sleep, for once would give the feeling that one had missed his dinner. Till one looked at the clock which showed the time as 19:30. Never, by any standards, late to begin the readings for the next day’s lectures. It seems these two years just went by planning, which quiz to ignore and which assignment to take up first. And between all this we had our share of celebrations, fun and of course the parties.
For a moment, I suddenly feel elated at this grown up stage of my life. I feel happy that I can now have my own money to spend. Happy at not having to give a detailed account of the expenditures made (something which I have miserably failed at, all the time).
As I type, our stay here is lesser by another day. A G Talk status message somewhere shows that its only 14 days to go. Time surely flies by! And in the end you are left with memories and memories.