It’s Christmas today. Year 2017. Government holiday and I don’t have office either. Did some office works in Godawari, and now resting. Feeling somewhat dull. Sitting in my favorite ‘penthouse’ which has amazing views. I created this room some 10 years back when I was briefly unemployed. During those days, I was badly in need of a job and spent some good time writing job applications. All in vein. So I have some good sentiments with this room.
Time has changed since. Now I am preparing for my international assignment which begins after 2 weeks. I will be based in Tanzania but will also oversee the Uganda operations. There will be some portion of India and Nepal in my work remit. This assignment is full of excitements and some uncertainties. Uncertainties, I will work out.
Coming back to my room, my penthouse, this is basically a glass room. Room surrounded by transparent glasses in three directions. So I can view 2 of the 4 highest mountains in the valley. The cable car leading to the hill top on the south and holy temple in the west. This is a scarcest combination. This is possible because it is surrounded with Glass Windows. Glass Windows have some very sentimental values with my life. It reminds my days when I was young and poor. The story will take me some 4 decades back.
I grew up in an old house, in a tiny room with a small wooden window. Window with no glasses. No glasses in my window means when I close it, the room get pitch dark. There were some holes in the window so when it rains, water comes in. One day, the rain spoiled my home-works of entire vacation. Winter mornings were especially difficult, I remember waking up by chilly winds whistling from the holes. In summers, I usually have only two choices, either you close your window and bear the heat or open the window and bear the mosquitoes bites. I spent my entire secondary level time in this tiny room struggling with this situation. Simply because, my family could not afford to improve the situation. Poverty is such a thing.
I still remember, on one evening, my affluent relative visited my room and got irritated by the mosquito bites. She leveled me as foolish and laughable. You just need to put a net and a glass in your window. You simply need to spend couple of hundred rupees, that’s all, my relative was satirical. But it was not “simple” or “that’s all” for me. Being poor is something, but being poor surrounded by rich relatives is another thing. I spend another 10 years in this rooms in a same situation. Thus, my first room with glass window was a big celebration, a big achievement for me.
That’s why I value so high with this glass room. It’s a value full of sentiments. Even when I go on travel, I open my curtains to appreciate the view. I can feel the view. I can smell the view. I can see the difference. I can see coming out of my poverty. But there are so many young people in this world who still live in a dark rooms. How many will come out their rooms to view the wonders of this earth, I wonder!
I hope I could have shared this story with my children. Nowadays, our youngsters don’t need windows. They love curtains than windows. Windows in the laptops or mobile will do all their works for them. They prefer dark side of the moon. And I prefer bright side of the day. Some weeks back I had a privilege to sleep one night in a real penthouse in a Resort in Nagarkot. You will not believe, I didn’t sleep till midnight gazing the stars, admiring the nature and paid tribute to my old room. I remember spending countless nights in my tiny room dreaming big things. Feel still proud of that dark room where I read, dreamed, planned, and grew up.
This is my simply glass window story. It depicts my journey, my life, my feelings, my emotions. The glass window of Christmas 2017. Merry Christmas, the northern star!!
4:37 pm, 25 December 2017
From The Glass Windowed Room
Ravindra Writes 