Sport can wait...

Still in the process of recovering from the state of overpowering numbness caused by the carnage dat happened 800 kms away. War ravaged Mumbai. Politicos have failed, intellectuals have failed and India needs a solution. We are fighting a battle that is lost way before it actually began... Where did it go wrong?Why did they die? Innocent lives lost again in a sinister storm of hatered and violence. Its personal tragedy to every Indian. ENOUGH!!! sadness must give way to resolve. Salute the heroes who fight our battles for us and make a pledge to fight terror with them.

Coming to the insignificant aspects that have threatened to consume much more attention than what they deserve...screw champions league!! And why on the earth do people make such a heavy whether of England going home being skeptical about comin back for the test series...i just dont get this!!..Look who is talking, I..who spent 80% of my life either playing, watching or thinking about cricket...am telling this....cricket can wait!!...cricket has to bow to reality.
England are right to go back. Anybody far away from home, however hospitable the conditions, needs to feel happy and wanted. You cannot live in an atmosphere of helplessness. If I was in a country where armed terrorists were searching for people who carry the same passport I do, I would be on the next flight home. This is not about you and me, our views, our relationships. It is about sinister people. Sportsmen have bats and hockey sticks, and sometimes just a quick pair of legs. They are entertainers. And even in our part of the world, cricket must grow insignificant at times. It is a game that brings a lot of joy and cheer and optimism but it is just a game.
What a pity though. Sport is one of the very very few things that can still unite people and bring a smile to the lips. Maybe art can do that; and literature. And certainly music. But sport goes beyond. It invokes competition, reveals the character of an individual, it reminds us of who we are. We grow passionate and we compete and imagine we are sportsmen too. We score every run they do and take every wicket they do and smile sheepishly at our moms or wives when we return the remote some hours later. Without sport we would be poorer, woefully poor but in the hierarchy of needs it must cede place to safety, to comfort, to relief; to the thought that you will see your loved ones the next morning.Sport should be played in an atmosphere of joy. You cannot make a painter paint or a singer sing with a gun to his head.

Our reputation has been dented. Visitors to our shores have been shot brazenly and our people too in trying to defend them. Sadly we are creatures of the environment we live in. So too must we accept the times and the doctrines that surround us. As we benefit so must we pay.
What a pity because we are largely a hospitable people. We support our team and occasionally scream at the opposition; we challenge their way of living sometimes but we bestow great love and sometimes great luxury on them. Hopefully this too shall pass.

And as England head back they will be relieved and contemplative. This morning, being with the family and friends was comforting. Popping by to the other bedroom and seeing your mom sleeping calmly suddenly seemed so much more beautiful. It must be the same with everybody. That is why England had the right to make the decision they did. We must welcome them again; give them no quarter on the field, try to beat them but welcome them to our land

A salute to the champions

This is my first post and I would dedicate this to one of the most heart wrenching experiences that I have been through in the recent past. I would dedicate this to a friend who has compelled me to keep a promised that I made to him a week ago and more importantly, I would dedicate this to each and everyone of the 50-odd new friends I made that day who made me realize that I possessed what 107 million orphans worldwide dint and more importantly that those 50 little champions in the game of life possessed what I dint.

It was the beginning of the last quarter of what has been a pretty leisurely weekend when Shiva called up asking me to accompany him and two more friends, Varun and Victor to Sphoorti, an organization that is home to 50 odd orphans. It was a plan made a week ago, which I would have conveniently ignored, had Shiva not made that call.

The moment I entered, those kids greeted me as if I ve known them for ages now. This little gesture gave me the first feel of the uninhibited warmth they had for a stranger. One of them was down with a major cut on her ankle. And the care and concern the others had for her, it was indeed surprising to say the least. Another incident that really made me think occurred when we saw them play cricket. I remember the days when I was in my primary school and would quarrel with my friends at every opportunity available for that little stint out there in the middle with the bat in hand. Those kids just don’t fight. I would say that they are living far away from the so-called civilization. So far away that they just don’t know how to hate. The levels of maturity they have shown at that age were something I could never imagine all these days.

It was such a happy lot, purity and innocence personified. They were extremely satisfied with what they were getting. All they need is a bit of moral support, people who play with them, people who listen to them and people who can talk about anything that they think makes sense. These little gestures of affection just make their day so special.

I was speechless for most of while during our drive to the restaurant where we had dinner. And the factor that I just couldn’t help brooding over was, each and every child I met must ve had a tragic past or a depressing background behind him. Well, how many of them are really aware of it? If they are not, are they strong enough to withstanding the truth if they come to know? Are they resilient enough to keep their misfortune aside and go ahead with their life? Who would provide them with the answers of all the questions that might spring up once they grow???

To conclude, I would applaud the Srivyal, Founder of Sphoorti for being so efficient in keeping the children happy and I would like to thank all the people who have always stood by be through the thick and thin.

for more picture and information visit http://www.sphoorti.org/