A Journey Rejuvenating

Work can sometimes take a toll on you, my week at work varies from good to great and from bad to worse. The trip to Yercaud was planned when things were going great, by the time D-Day arrived things at work had shaped up very bad. So this trip came as a welcome relief from the madness which we call "Work". This trip was planned along with my team of colleagues. I call them as colleagues because I feel that why be friends with people in an organization where the shelf life of your job is less? Why share your deepest fears and your dreams with people who may one day walk out of your life with the same speed with which they had entered? I had got an answer to all these questions by the time I had packed my bag to the journey back home.

Yercaud is a hill station 1500 mts above sea level, an hour's drive away from Salem. If you are from the South you may fancy it lesser when compared to Ooty, Kodaikanal or Munnar. My team had shut shop (closed down the process) by 2 pm on a rainy Friday afternoon, we were all geared up for the trip. Things seemed to be going on track as we felt that we had ample time to catch our train, things changed when the waterlogged streets and the heavy traffic made us sit on the edge of our seats. The only good thing that had happened to us was slowly slipping away from our hands. With half an hour to go before the train left and more than half of the distance to be covered, half of us including yours truly had given up all hopes of catching the train. I was busy thinking of a back up plan on what was to be done after we missed the train. The other half believed that "It ain't over till it over", they pinned all their hopes on the power of prayer.

Just as we entered Chennai Central we got out of our cabs grabbing each other's bags and sprinted across the platform running like headless chickens. This trip was the only thing we got at that point of time when everything else was falling apart at work. As we hustled into the crowded station navigating through the sea of humanity holding each other's hands, I realized that this trip was meant to happen. This was my team and no man was to be left behind! We boarded the train with hardly three minutes to spare, we got into any compartment we could find. You cherish something you got only after you had to fight for it till your last breath, this journey had  already given me a reason to cherish.

I had been working along with my colleagues for almost half a year now and never have I bothered to know much about them. We spend nearly ten to eleven hours a day in our office, yet I've never felt the need to know them personally as I have known them professionally. This trip was more about discovering each other and ourselves apart from discovering unexplored territory. 

Yercaud was lit with different shades of green, there was something in the cold misty air that cleared our minds off the trouble back home and made us live the moment with each other. We laughed, we danced, we sang, we lived life as it was meant to be. We climbed the hill tops braving the strong wind holding each other willing to never let go. The scenery that Yercaud had to offer from its highest points which are funnily named as "Ladies Seat", "Gent's Seat" took our breath away and also took our minds of the troubles awaiting at work. The Rose Garden  was a treat for sore eyes, never have I seen so many colors in a single place.

The silver lining in the cloud that enveloped the hills gave me a ray of hope that if things worsen at work I at least have these moments to look back to. Nature has the power in it to heal broken souls, and scarred minds and wounded hearts. The weather may have been chilly but there was a warmth within us for each other in that made us see the lighter side of life, it made us believe that tough times only make people tougher. The nights were spent listening to spook stories that sent a shiver down our spine, we would chat up till five in the morning talking about life, love and the responsibilities that one grows along with.  As the trip ended I had realized that the splendor of nature sometimes makes us feel that life is so simple, yet it is only us who make it seem so complicated. Life becomes simple when you have people to share it with. I had learnt to dance, I had learnt to sing, I had learnt to make others laugh, I learnt to laugh at myself, and strangely yet endearingly I learnt to call my colleagues as my friends, and that was nature's greatest gift for me.