happy new year

ok this is the time when everybody meets each other with the three magical words... HAPPY NEW YEAR... families plan vacations... the middle-class save the whole year to spend this week... with all thats been happening around the world in general and india in particular, i was of the opinion that people would not spend lavishly on this new years eve.. i thought that with the recent mumbai attacks, the global meltdown and the resulting instability would dater people from celebrating an occasion which i frankly never understood. i mean, whats there to celebrate in a new year? i can understand a birthday or an anniversary or any other momentous occasion but a new year? and especially this new year! whats there to celebrate this year.. what have we achieved in 2008 that we look forward to 2009 and welcome its inception. this was perhaps the worst year in the past few decades. surely people would not be celebrating this new year.
but as i was travelling around the city, i realised how wrong i was. people were excited about the new year. and not just excited, they were going out of their way to welcome it. people were thronging bakeries to buy cakes. families, friends were planning on where to celebrate rather than whether to celebrate? and i was just roaming alone with two thoughts in mind. people are either dying or are getting sacked around the world. and i could be one of the latter coz this was my last sem. my last new year in my college life with my friends. surely i had a larger reason to make this occasion all the more memorable. but there i was just alone thinking if these are the same people who uptil yesterday were mourning those dead in the mumbai blasts ans vowing to fight for justice. did they forget everything overnight? is this what the human race has become? are we so selfish that we dont care about others in our good times.
and as i was going around i saw a group of poor people begging for food. no one seemed to care about them. why would they? god has been kind to them. so what if he hasnt blessed those beggars or those victims around the world. thats not of any concern to us right. we are a race above them right? there were small kids begging for food and the rich didnt care because they had their very important celebrations.
i relieved myself of some money to give them whatever i could. they seemed to be verry happy. this was their new year, their celebration. then i stood there a few minutes and i saw some kids share crackers with them. they all seemed happy together. then i realised that not everyone forgets others in their happiness. and there are many who try to hide their sorrows and everyone celebrates the new year because if theres one thing that god has given us all in equanimity, it is HOPE.. the hope for a better tomorrow.. the hope that these celebrations of today might mask their sorrows of last year... and surely they believe in the adage THE PUSPOSE OF LIFE IS THE CELEBRATION OF BEING ALIVE... yes this is the new year and this is the time to celebrate.. so lets all celebrate, lets pray to god for a better 2009 but lets also pray for others around the world who are not in a situation to celebrate.. i guess the world needs these kind of festivals because they generate employment oppurtunities.. for eg. the bakers and the tourism industry benifit from this.. i guess to keep everything in a level field, these kinda festivals will continue...... i just hope that during our celebration, we dont forget everyone else
and for all my collegemates, these are the last few months so lets try to make them memorable... and everyone who has read this.. i hope u can forgive me if i have ever done any harm to u.. plzz forgive me...