Charcoal's Holiday

Another week starts, which is the only full week of the year 2008. In ten days, 2008 goes as a memory. This week will start the holiday season, the biggest commercial holiday season every year has got. Most of my friends will go for vacations. For a person like me, who mostly depend the virtual world for friendship, it might look like ‘oh, something is missing here’. May be or may be not.

So, how will I spent these holiday season? I don’t know yet. I might answer more questions in Yahoo Answer….or may be I will go ahead with learning my programming. Anyway, I have to spend some decent amount of time preparing some question papers and study materials for my son… yes, 10 days will fly just like that. Emotionally, I wish to spend this holiday with a couple of my friends who can’t afford ‘celebrations’. This reminded me of a fact. The poor remains as poor, irrespective of caste, creed, religion or country. People and communities have got funds to spread and impose their faith on to others who don’t believe in that, even at the cost of disturbing the peace of the society. They are gifted with ‘long sight’. They can’t see people who are near them and they have long term goals.

This year, I was more comfortable facing the popular question of ‘why don’t YOU celebrate OUR festival’. I wonder why people can’t understand such simple things. Why doesn’t USA celebrate India’s Independence Day? The logic is so simple..

I want to leave a very small note to a friend of mine, though we are not friends anymore. There was a special moment this week and that was the only moment that pained me, this whole week:

“Friend, you could have at least shown the courtesy to utter one word ‘ Thanks’, when I greeted you for the biggest festival of yours. I understand that it’s nothing but religion that made you wise enough to push me away. But I want to tell you one thing. When I look at your face, I see a friend and not your religion. May be one day you will realize that this virtual man had a heart which understands love that give friendships a meaning. It is easy to preach love but hard to practice. All the best.”

I might look like a charcoal. But at least that is external. Thank God !