The Nerdy Traveller

A portrait of me by Prabhata Das (ISS  2021) Bhai Nuapali, Kansingha, Bargarh, Odisha This Day, 18 Years Ago 22 May, 2005 The day that changed my life forever. The day I got a letter of admission from Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Sambalpur. I still remember the day vividly. I was going for a bath with Bapa on our M80 bike to Mamu's tubewell. The postman encountered us midway under the shades of mango trees and informed us that I had passed the Navodaya Entrance Examination successfully. I was overjoyed. The emotions that can't be described in words. Bapa and I returned from there itself and informed everyone in the village. We distributed sweets to this effect. Everybody was very happy on hearing this auspicious news. I have secured second rank in the State on two occasions , have got admission into the two most famous IITs and have secured All India Rank 7 in UPSC Indian Statistical Service Examination . However, I still consider 22 May, 2005 to be the best day of my life....

There was this one girl in my office. She was fair and petite, with long, silky hair. We had met once in an orientation session. It was just another day in office. I had gone to bank for some work and missed having breakfast with my team members. So, I went to cafeteria alone. Two minute into having coffee, I saw her occupying a seat couple of tables ahead. In the conflict between mind and heart, the latter got the upper hand . I went to her table and asked, “May I have a seat?” She nodded. It seemed like an eternity without any exchange of word s between us. The sound of my order being ready broke the silence . After returning with the order, I found her missing at the table . Before I could curse myself for screwing th ings up, I saw her coming with a cup of c offee in her hand. We talked for half an hour on various topics. We became good friends though we seldom shared the same table. O ur coffee buddies were different. Fast forward to five months later. I was ...