Bon Voyage

When was the last time you did something new? I keep asking this to people. It does make people go around thinking of doing something new if they haven’t done anything lately. So I asked this to myself the other day & decided to learn how to drive! Me, along with my brother & cousin got into the car and started off our voyage. I call it a Voyage, rather than a drive because it actually turned out to be one – It was a perfect adventure trip. Bits & pieces of it described below.

I had been on the wheel earlier, so it was not a bad start for me. I picked up the instructions pretty quickly. My siblings kept saying ‘Stay on the left’, ‘change the gear’, ‘Release the hold on the clutch’ which I diligently followed. I kept driving for an hour, so we kept changing the lanes every time.  While I did this, I realized that most of the places I had never been to before. It was my neighborhood, but still I hardly came there. I now feel if I was asked how well I knew my neighborhood, the answer would be ‘Umm Well, I don’t!’

As I kept driving, we got into a playground to practice better. And what I saw totally surprised me - The ground was choc-a-bloc. There were so many kids playing different games. It was a Saturday evening, & perhaps a half day for the kids & so they headed to the playground. There were so many kids playing Cricket. I wish our national game was Cricket - We would have fared better! There were four groups with youngsters from different age groups playing along. Howzat, whistles & screams teamed along.

There was a family who had come down as well - Parents with their two children- aged 6-8 maybe. They played badminton & flying saucer. In my first round of the playground, I saw the couple (parents) playing badminton, & in the next one I saw them teamed up with a kid each. Don’t they say parents are the best teachers? This couple just proved it. It was a sight to see them play. They were not only spending the time with their kids, but also enjoying their time spent. And by picking sports as a means to spend time, they were actually helping themselves & their kids stay fit. (Follow http://www.lifetimetips.com/health-fitness-busy-people-corporate-world/ for some helpful fitness tips).

On the track, there were also a few other people learning how to drive. There was a husband teaching his wife how to drive their new Vento (I could say it was new as it had those lemons & pooja stuff on it). There was also a brother teaching his sister how to ride an Activa. The poor chap was brisk-running behind her as she was riding through slowly. What really made me smile was 2 boys (could be friends or brothers) the elder one was teaching the other one how to ride a bicycleJ. The kid managed to ride diagonally past us on the track and the joy on his face was seamless.

It was pleasing to watch people find happiness in little things. I manage to find some nostalgic moments on my ‘Voyage’. J