Wednesday, May 20, 2009

This One's For You, Termi

Statutory warning: This could get sentimental

Termi,

A few hours ago, doubts were raised, and words were spoken. And the look on our face stayed with me. You know the one when you turned your face and looked me in the eye. I tried to avoid that gaze, but there are some things in the world that you just can’t avoid. That look on your face which told me just how badly you want this to work out. I knew it all along; you’ve spoken about it often, how badly you want to get into NALSAR, and how these two years come to naught if you don’t make it.


But Termi, this is not the end. Look at the larger picture, and you’ll see it’s just the beginning. We’re 18 years old, we have all our limbs intact, we have a home to go after goofing at Acro’s place, and well, we have goofing at Acro’s place. And Termi, the most important thing is that we have each other (Go away, Sentimentality. Today let me speak.) We might not have a law school after all this ends, but I think what we have here is more valuable than the best law school in the world and a placement in a New York law office put together. (And we can still have a law school. Like I said, it’s not yet over. It never is.)


Okay, so we might not get to hang out when, and if, we go separate ways. We might make new friends, and probably things would never be the same again. But nothing in the world, not Catherine Zeta-Jones, not Fundoo’s hot law school senior, not Paarth’s new bandmates, not Penelope Cruz, not Abhi’s lake, not Acro’s Daniel Craig, and not your Sherwood, nothing can take away all the goofing we’ve done for the past few months. Only amnesia maybe can take it all away, or Alzheimer’s, but it’s allowed (Fundoo-style “It’s allowed”) not to take that into account.


You told me that I don’t know what you feel like, because I’ve always been consistent and I’ve always done well. Maybe you’re right; I don’t know what it’s like. It’s like Bombay Masala; you don’t know what you’re missing until you’ve had it. But Termi, this is just one aspect of my life. There are things that I’ve wanted as badly as you want this, and I’ve not got them. Most of the times, I didn’t have the guts, Termi. I didn’t have the bloody guts to put in all in a heap and risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss. But you HAVE the guts. You might not have done too well on the first mock, but you picked yourself up, dusted yourself down, and kept walking. You worked harder, you stayed up nights, you OD’ed on coffee, and just basically, you hung in there, Termi and by doing so, you showed that you’re going to stick it out till the very end. How can you be a failure after that? And I use the word failure, because that’s what you said you thought of yourself. You read so much more, you quizzed us, you watched movies, and basically, took part in all the stuff we did, without a shade of reluctance or insecurity.


You said two years will be wasted if you don’t make it. But nothing is ever wasted. Not time, not random facts from the Chronicle. Subconsciously, it’s all shaping us, and changing perspectives. And of course, the time we spent on Killer is never wasted. Now you know that you don’t do the cop move when you get the Jack of Spades. Who knows, man, one day, in a casino in Barcelona, you don’t do the cop move, and you win a yacht or something.


Maybe what I said came across as harsh but you know what I meant. You know exactly what I meant. But in case you think I offended you in any way, I apologize. Full and unconditional apology.


Okay so you might not have Russel Crowe's abs or intensity or skirt, but you need to think of yourself as Maximus. They throw you in the Colosseum, but you fight, because you have to. You fight with strength and honour. You don’t fall on your knees and surrender. You look life straight in the eye, and say, “Game on, bitch. Game on.”


Go nail it, Termi.

2 comments:

Niyati Gandhi said...

I don't have words.
(that is a very rare event)
and termi-
Nobody-
NOBODY in the entire world can take your destiny away from you.
and you know when you desired, worked, slogged- you instructed the universe to give you what you want.
AND YOU'LL GET IT.
because Life's the Bitch.
The Universe is the Good Guy.
And THAT'S what its all ABOUT.

abhishek said...

In the words of Paarth "full respect"(but add some more just for the heck of it)..and to termi- You gotta get knocked down, to get back up....You're made of stronger stuff...and m not talking about bones and flesh..Its the spirit and determination in you...that kills everything and makes you a winner..

DUDE JUST GO GET SUM LAY!!