The Cup Of Life

So, the greatest sporting spectacle of our times has arrived! It's time for the world's best football players to come out all guns blazing and Joga Bonita! I personally, have never been a big football fan. But yes, the world cup makes football fans out of all of us! So here I am, blogging on what everyone seems to be obsessed with right now! And what a start it has been to the world cup. Three goals in the first 16 minutes!! Neat stuff! This Miroslav Klose dude really seems to come to the party at the world cups! And who can forget Beckham's trademark free kick today! I think I might be officially baptised into the world of football by the time the world cup comes to a close!

As I read in a local daily today, according to a survey conducted, about 90% of the Indian youth chose football over cricket! And we thought cricket was a religion here! What is it that draws the attention of fans worldwide? I mean look around.. Every shop at every mall is going overboard with the merchandise! I walked into Garuda today, and woah! Normally, the cookie monsters would be the first to capture your attention with that surprisingly awful smell (How is that possible though? The cookies taste awesome!) . But today, I was greeted by some salespeople dressed in the Brazilian jersey (cheap imitation of it.. well, nonetheless). And the best part was, they were trying to sell laptops! Connection please???

Ah well, no point trying to comprehend this mass frenzy among the hoi polloi! I've decided to just sit back and enjoy the world cup. Only drawback is that I've lost all monopoly over the remote control at home. Try reasoning with the tag team of grandfather and father that the French Open finals is equally important! So, the way things are shaping up, Federer and Nadal will have to take a back seat tomorrow! And to add to the hopelessness of the situation, Sehwag just hit a hundred at a rate rarely seen in ODI's even. Tennis is the worst game to be passionate about right now! Ronaldinho and Rooney will be familiar faces on the TV for the next month or so. And did I forget to mention that my kid brother's obsession with Kenan and Kel is not helping!!

Coming back to the world cup, like I said, I'm gonna just give in and experience life in an eight inch diameter! I'll even pick favorites! I'm backing Brazil or England to win this. Though Ivory Coast seems like a funky team! Would be nice to see them do well! So there you have it.. The passions are shifting, albeit temporarily! If anyone has seen the Nike "Soccer versus Ninja's" ad, maybe that will explain it.. Here's how it starts. The coach shows the players the picture of a football which has been taken by the Ninja's, and the following is the dialogue that follows -

Coach - "We need this back."

Players - "It's just a ball."

Coach - "No! It's rounder."

Is IIT IT?

8:00 am on a tuesday morning. Approximately 3 lakh people logged on to the internet to check their fate. A number, or a rank would possibly decide their future, and disturbingly for some, their existence. The IITJEE 2006 results were being annnounced. Once they were out, it was a moment of sheer ecstacy for some, and a heart breaking one for many others. Sadly, many people who did not make it, took their lives because they couldn't accept their failure. Looking at both sides of the coin, I thought to myself whether all the effort was really worth it. I mean , forget the physical and mental stress for a moment. What about the emotional drain? Was IIT really worth all this?

Flashback to 2 years. All of us began our long journey towards the IIT summit. Tom and Jerry were replaced by Resnick and Halliday. Through the past two years, many of us dropped out of this journey for many reasons. Some though, stayed on, and studied hard, and I mean really hard. All their focus was on April 9, 2006 when they would write the IIT exam. There were many barriers in their path, but they overcame each one of them with determination, if not with ease. So, as the days turned into weeks, which turned into months, books as thick as pillows were finished off with mind-numbing pace. Sleep was not an option for some. I remember secretly hoping that all of them would somehow make it, after all the toil.

My question was answered on the 31st of May 2006, when the results were announced. Many of my friends made it, and even more did not. What I remember the most from that day was the supreme joy I felt on hearing that my best friend had got a phenomenal all India rank of 153. I mean, if I myself could be so happy, I can't imagine how happy he must be. And this was when I realised that it was all worth it. You might sacrifice a year of your childhood to get into IIT, but once you make it, there's no bigger joy. Just knowing that you are among the smartest people in the country, and that you are studying at the best college in your country and arguably the world, that must be one hell of a feeling.

So if IIT is your aim, and you indeed make it, all the effort becomes worth it. The intellectual and career benefits of being an IITian speak for themselves. Even if you do not make it, just knowing that you had the resolve to make the journey should leave you feeling proud of yourself. For that matter, I guess that whenever we are fixed on an aim, want it bad enough, and decide to work towards it, the outcome becomes a small part of the entire process. In the words of a wise man -

"Don't worry about the destination. Enjoy the journey."