There are always some messages that come along with us all the way and throughout our lives. It is in realizing the meaning that the message comes alive or we would only be looking at it and not learn anything at all. It was a journey that thought me to add values to life.
I had taken the train and was returning home after work. The not so crowded suburban train services in the Indian metropolitan transports almost all walks of life. The train takes space that is much lesser and quicker than the other means of movements in India, more affordable and convenient. It is much safer than other vehicles that play the role of transporting the neighborhood.
It was a cold evening and the trains were embarked by the regular and also the not so regular people who were returning home to retire from their days work. There were local vendors with their fruit baskets, the employees of different industries, students and all factions of people who were with or without partner to exchange words. Those that found seats, occupied them some were on their feet clinging on to the holders that hung from the horizontal rods and there were few other who found their place on the metal floor close to the footboards.
It is unusual for the gypsies to travel by train because they hardly carry any money and the local railway inspectors were round the pathway penalizing those who travelled without tickets. Most gypsies were refugees of the Gujarat earthquake disaster and they had migrated from their lands to find succor. Fortunately for the gypsies it was their lucky day and there hadn’t been one officer who was on the trail. I noticed them sitting there inside at one corner of the train, a couple of them with their children probably members of the same family.
Their children were inside the train and they were playing all over the place, pushing and pulling each other. They were immensely engrossed with joy as they both played around. They least cared about the people who were looking at them and that is how children will be. It was nice to see them happy and I am sure that those who were watching them play would have wished in their hearts to be children again. These little ones were so amused with their playing that they took least notice of the people around.
There were a set of ladies who probably were going for a marriage. They had a lot of other things to gossip over and they were talking their heads out sitting inside the train. Though I was seated right next to them, I did not have the heart to listen to what they were gossiping over. I was amused with the little children and so I did not take much notice of the other two. I could hear their conversation but I could not figure out what exactly they were talking about. They sure did notice the little children playing around but they looked at them with an eye of detest and pride. Untouchables were still prevalent. Their pull and push was interrupted by the elder in the gypsy group. But nothing could stop them; they still continued to play around with any concern. Accidentally one of them happen to dash against the well dressed women from the push the other gave him. The lady pushed off the child as though something horrific had fallen over her. The child was wounded of his heart; I could feel the child’s emotion when she pushed him off for having touched her. But nevertheless, they both continued playing until they come to their stop to get off the train. After sometime, I borrowed a pen from the same lady who had pushed off the child and wrote all that had happened there in the train.
Though the law says that all of us are equals, there are still this racial discrimination and caste differences prevailing in the country. Independence has been given only to the soil and not to the people. Most of us still fight for rights and establishing good values in the society. When we say we love our country, we should also be able to love our neighbors. When we acclaim that all Indians are our brothers and sisters, we should also be able to live up to what we say. If we cannot change ourselves, then let us not pledge our devotion to our country.
