Creativity and Inspiration - College Diary #4

      When I joined Engineering, I had hid safely behind a mask. Silent - that is how I had portrayed myself. I was happy inside the comfort zone and stepping out of it was out of question. I saw many of my friends join various activities, create a foothold and get recognition. But that never bothered me. Spotlight wasn't something I craved (I don't crave for it now either) I was happy sitting back and watching them grow. I spent the first 2 years of my Engineering life like this and then, it all changed.

       I was in the third year of Engineering. I would have continued with my sit-back-and-watch-them attitude if not for the COSMOS coordinator of that year. (COSMOS is the name of our branch fest) That year's coordinator is one of my favorite lecturers who inspire me a lot. Every Friday he used to come up with some or the other competitions. Yes, there were the common ones but that was not what caught my attention. There were many new things - 'What is your Name?' where we had to describe our name without saying it; 'Insituation' - where we were given a situation and an hour to prepare, after which we had to enact it in a group; 'Creme de la creme' where we had to take a theme and present all the talents of our class. The competitions were many but there was one thing that was the basis of all these activities - Creativity. 

(My Painting for 'What is your Name?' competition)

       Participating in these competitions, I underwent a huge change. I still detested spotlight, yet there was a burning desire in me to prove myself. I enjoyed participating in these creative events. I don't remember which event exactly led to this; probably it was 'What is your Name' and 'Creative Writing' but something in me changed. I shed the mask I so painstakingly had created for myself. I shed my inhibitions and fears which sometimes held me back and took one bold step. It was during that time this blog was created. And am I glad? I will be forever grateful for the encouragement I received from him (my lecturer) at that time. Knowingly or unknowingly, he had guided me towards my destiny. And even today, he continues to be a source of inspiration for me (Though probably, I will never find the courage to tell him this!)

       Since then, I have learnt one thing. Creativity requires you to step out of your comfort zone and probably try something new. You have to get rid of the fear of failure before trying new things. And the end result? It is totally worth it!

PS: Linking this post to Day 1 of Write Tribe - Festival of Words #4.

Until the next post,

Keep Smiling :)

Love,

Swathi :)

And Some Fun - College Diary #3

       The best kind of fun happens in the class when the lecturers and students are on the same wavelength. In first year, freshers of all branch were herded in one building - STEP. It was our own world without any seniors. Some lecturers even stood outside the STEP building during break time to ensure ragging didn't take place. It was all fun and exciting. But the first real fun happened inside the class.

       It was time for Mechanical class. The lecturer knew how to create a lively atmosphere in class. We used to call him 'Chatur' because he looked exactly like Chatur from 3 idiots and even had a similar accent! Those were the days when me and my friends used to sit in the front row (Now that I think of it, it was the only year in my entire student life where I sat in the front row. For the rest, I have been a proud Back Bencher :P) There was a window near our row and a staircase opposite to it, on the other end. 

       We were a group of four and one of my friends was a popular target for ragging. That day, during the Mechanical class, 2 BBM boys were sitting on those staircase and staring at us (or at my friend in particular) My friend started fidgeting in her seat when she noticed it. It was an irritating situation but soon turned into an amusing one when our lecturer noticed them. He ignored them for the first few minutes but when they didn't move from that spot, he decided that it was time to teach them a lesson. He went out and called them inside. They half turned to run away but then realized it was of no use. He would catch them anyhow. So they walked inside with their head held high, like they were some kind of celebrities. And what happened next was probably beyond their expectation.

       "I don't like disturbance during my class" he started. We all thought he was going to scold them and then let them go. Even the guys thought the same and were smirking. But Chatur was cool. He went on. "Now that you have disturbed my class just because you wanted to gain the attention of girls, I will give you exactly that. The stage is all yours. Go on, lets see what you have got" There was pin drop silence for few seconds and then we burst out laughing. Now it was the boys' turn to fidget. They looked at each other and then at Chatur to see if he was kidding but he wasn't! "You can either sing or you can dance too" he went on quoting the options. The next 10 minutes were hilarious. Those 2 boys were given the taste of their own medicine. They were regretting coming near our class!

       After they said sorry for the hundredth time, Sir finally let them go with a warning not to repeat the same mistake. And they never did! We never saw them hanging around our class, which used to be their favorite pastime before. And as for us, well we had enjoyed this little session a lot :D Probably more than we should!

Until the next post,

Keep Smiling :)

Love,

Swathi :)

A New Beginning - College Diary #2

       I stepped into the world of engineering without knowing what to expect. It was never my choice - at least the stream I had entered was not! I always wanted to go for Aerospace Engineering but my dad wouldn't listen. He wouldn't send me out of my hometown. Whatever it is, I had to read staying in Shimoga only. I had went on hunger strikes too to convince him but nothing worked. So I had settled on the next best thing - Basic Science. Chemistry was my favorite and I decided to read basic science and enter research field. It sounded exciting but again, it wasn't a 'good' career option according to dad. So in the end, I ended up taking 'Computer Science' in 'Jawaharlal Nehru National College of Engineering'. I certainly had no idea about how I was going to cope up!

       First day of college is always special. There is a feeling which resembles to the one you get when you are going on an adventure. And then there is the fear. It is always a mixed feeling. I too had somewhat similar experience. While I was all set for the adventure, I wasn't sure if I would be able to handle it all on my own. My best friends were miles away, in different colleges. I wondered if I would fit in! Finally I decided there was no use in fretting; I had to get used to the new environment.

       A smile creeps up whenever I read the diary entry of the first day - I was scared and excited at the same time. I had lost my way while finding classroom and had entered the branch where only seniors were present. Thank God I realized it before anyone started ragging! After that, I was scared to leave class room and go to canteen. The seniors were all excited - waiting to have some fun and as for us, juniors, well we were comfortable inside the class. On that very first day, I made a new friend without realizing how close we will grow over time. She had been my classmate from 5 years. Still, we had never really talked much with each other but the new surrounding had brought us closer. 

       I had embarked on this journey without knowing it would change me forever - in a good way. And now if I look back, I am so glad that I listened to dad and took this path.

Until the next post,

Keep Smiling :)

Love,

Swathi :)

The Goodbyes - College Diary #1

       I came home today with tears in my eyes. I just couldn't stop crying. My mom was shocked, given that I had been to branch fest happily and while she expected me to come back and tell her about how good it was, I had come back crying. Her mind was already working out 1000 different things that could have gone wrong. Did the magazine release go bad? (I will write about it in another post) Did you mess up while hosting? Did anyone say something to you? Her questions were endless but I couldn't speak other than shaking my head. I could see her panicking. I didn't want to worry her on Mother's Day like this. Finally, I managed to say what was bothering me. "It's all over... college... I am feeling bad" I said between sobs and broke down again. And what did she do? Burst out laughing!!

        Well, I can't blame her. Till now I was waiting for this day. Whenever I saw someone getting emotional about the end approaching soon, I would pull out a poker face not wanting to show them how happy I was with the fact. Of course I was happy! No more classes, no more going to college, no more assignments and no more reading for internals. Sounded too good for me. But today these same words which used to make me happy all these days, are making me emotional. No more classes - I would miss sitting in the last bench, passing comments, doodling and bunking class to go to canteen. No more going to college - I would miss roaming in campus, clicking random pics, enjoying with friends, fighting over petty issues and then forgetting them sooner than it happened. No more assignments - I would miss fighting over who will write it, copying it from friends and coming up with creative excuses when we failed to complete it. No more reading for internals - no more worrying over average, no more dividing the portions between friends and no more mugging up minutes before internals. 

       I still can't believe its been four years already! It still feels like yesterday that I joined engineering, not because I wanted to but because I was forced to. I was hoping these 4 years would end soon and it did! Then why am I feeling so bad now when this is what I wanted all along?

       Every word holds a different meaning today. When I look back, I can only see moments that make me smile because they were so good and cry because they are coming to an end. Oh, how I wish I can stop time right at this moment and thus stop the goodbyes that will follow in few days. But wish as I might, I know life has to go on. So while there is still few days left, I want to make the most of it and collect as many memories I can to cherish them for the rest of my life. 

         Starting from today, for the rest of the month, I am going to share stories of my college life. It is my way of coping up with the overflowing emotions and cherishing the memories forever. This 'College Diary' series is dedicated to all my friends and lecturers (Yes!) who made these 4 years a memorable one :)

Until the next post,

Keep Smiling :)

Love,

Swathi :)