We are the owner of whatever is left in the pocket

He is in his early eighties now. Robust old man! Definitely a sort of

achiever at the property front! More so against the fact that when he

and his family escaped from the blooded Pakistani soil at the

partition time, after losing loved ones and all property, they were

even poorer than beggars. He started earning for the family at the

tender age of 8 only. Then graduated onto become a truck driver and

ultimately a transporter. His struggles took him to all corners of the

country in all types of circumstances. I asked him about the guiding

philosophies in his life. There was a light in his old, dim eyes:

'This fellow trucker of ours was really poor. All his worth was

invested in this old truck. We were going in a convey in north east.

His vehicle was carrying jaggery. The thing got toppled into a hole.

It was damaged and jaggery all over the place. Fortunately he and his

helper boy came out with bruised on skin. But I knew he was carrying

bigger scars in his heart because that truck was all he had in the

name of property. We were just afraid how he will react to it. In fact

we were almost speechless so far as paying lip service is concerned.

He just sat at a stone and cast a sad look at the damaged truck. In a

very normal tone he called his helper, "Oye yaar jo hona tha ho gaya.

Ab rone ka kya fayada. Bhookh lagi hai puttar. Bring me some lumps of

jaggery and water. Bad ki bad me sochenge. Pahle bhojan to kar le."

Saying this he invited all of us into the feast as well.'

This is what is all about life buddy. It is no use crying over spilt

milk. We have to ensure the show continues. Whatever is left after a

storm is truly what belongs to us. We have to proceed with the journey

with the depleted resources. Well, a journey is after all a journey

fella! It is not justified that we expect all the pomp, show and

regalia to accompany us till the end. As Pan Singh Tomar said: 'One

has to complete the race! Winning and losing does not mater. All we

can do is just try to reach the finish line!'