Life is Beautiful.....

As I begin my new article, im a bit confused..Its been a while that I ve posted an article on my blog.. and I really don’t know what do I write bout.. the last one year was pretty hectic..and I therefore decided to give my synapses a lil rest!
So the simplest thing to do would be to just share a few experiences which happened last year…
As a first year resident in CVTS, I got to learn a lot of things, that I could only fantasise about earlier…the sight of the heart ‘beating’ in front of your eyes is simply AMAZING!!!! Playing with the tiny toons in my ward has been THE MOST EXHILRATING experience of my life… a few of them would accompany me for my rounds and I would often ask them to take BP of all the pts if they were to assist me in my rounds.. that would bring a sweet smile on to their faces and that was probably THE MOMENT of my life! I was humbled and astonished to see how well these kids fought for life, post operatively and that taught me ,never give up….always put in your maximum efforts…and of course, let the Lord decide coz the final call is always HIS!

Though I have taken pride in our successes, i have also been grounded by the harsh reality that the WORST feeling of life is when your loved one passes away and, even, you as a doctor can’t do anything…[it all happens in an instant, and life is never the same thence!!].

A few instances that come to my mind when I say this are-

Shrushti, a 2 yr old child, probably the sweetest that I ve seen so far. She was born with an absent thumb, radial hypoplasia and a congenital heart disease. Already operated by plastic surgeons, she was then referred to us. Her mom was criticised for having such a baby by her in laws ever since she was born.. she had no support from them. She, therefore, took up a job in the local store so that she could meet the expenses of her child s surgery. I was following her up in the opd.. In the midst of all this, my dad had an heart attack, and I lost her . Surprisingly, she came looking for dad in ICCU , wished him the best and asked me if Shrushti would be fine..this she would do, everyday! Sadly, Shrushti did not make it. I was heart broken and she was just inconsolable…that s the least that I can say!!! Bcoz no words can ever substitute for feelings… [..any form of love, the day its gone.. the whole world crumbles down!....and you feel helpless and hapless…]

The next one was one amongst us, my brethren.. Samip, my junior from Sion and a surgery resident too. He was diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy with a very low Ejection Fraction on the eve of his exams. He had presented with palpitations and breathlessness and was diagnosed to have ‘examination blues!’ But when his symptoms did not abate even after the exams were over, everyone was in for a shock! We admitted him ..but, his conditioned worsened progressively. We could see it all…and that day I understood how helpless one can be…!!! Each and every treatment modality was tried on him, sadly nothing seemed to work! Finally we decided to go in for a cardiac transplant [..since he was suffering from an autoimmune disease, we had refrained from a transplant till now!!] but then it was all too late as his myocardium gave up the very next night…and again we were reduced to the mere mortals, who could just wait and watch!!! As I glance through his fb homepage, I get tat sinking feeling and its not nice!! All those photos remind me of him and those days at Sion..not good at all…

The very next day after this incident I was in for a rude shock.. life can make you cry,at times! Today was no different! My friend and a fellow medicine resident at kemh.. sandeep patil..was no more. He was on the way to Bombay hospital on his bike, when he was hit by an unidentified truck near Imax, Wadala. The driver ,obviously, sped away… and by the time help arrived in the form of the Mumbai police ‘Flying Squad’, he had breath his last! It is horrendous to face the agony of losing a son in this manner..the ashen gray face of his parents spoke a thousand words!

Another dear one whom I lost recently….Greta… I dunno wat to say..just as I glance through my album called-THE GOOD OLE’ DAYS on fb… again those memories rush to my mind!..the first time when I visited Karande sir …met Gretu and played with her for the entire day…the day she gave birth to Ninotschka, and again I played with them for the entire day!!.. Will miss all tat..!!


So as you see guys, the first year in Cvts was a lil hectic and I had quite a few ‘sad n gloomy’ moments on the way..

And then….

………….. my juniors arrived and along came..Second year!!! A year where the OT shut down and now suddenly, we had lots of time on our hands… so I was back on fb… getting back to terms with the world and all the happenings around! Now, unfortunately, I was game. Hunted down by mom & dad..no reasoning seemed to work!! All my excuses were in vain as they proclaimed that this is the time for you to get hooked.. I was very sceptical in the beginning! Tried every trick up my sleeve..tried to run away..but..rishte mein toh who hamaare baap lagte hai.. I had to succumb…sob sob..

.. but then the hilarious part of this new journey began.. soon I realised that after fb..these matrimony sites offered you the best humorous posts that one can ever find!! Sambhaji, Supreet and Prabodh.. I’m sure that you guys agree to this[..idea of a blind date!]!!

Soon I realised that the entire nation is full of understanding, fun loving, educated, cultured and respected families!! And that every son/daughter is good looking, understanding, adjustable, sophisticated and has a good sense of humor…blah blah… and that ‘expectations’ are always simple.. ‘a guy who is down to earth, has no attitude, convent educated, earns more than 7lakhs/annum, preferably settled in a metro, is liberal in thinking, respects everyone, rooted and completely family oriented, humble and simple living, with high thinking and caring, with strong traditional values, affectionate, someone who can understand ‘her’ and her feelings too..caste no bar…blah blah..the list just goes on..and on..and on……!!!!’

For the beginners, after school this is probably the most extensive questionnaire that one may have filled- it goes something like this-

PERSONAL>name/age/ht/wt/body type/complexion/physical status/bld group

Name-not really imp coz the matrimony site gives u its own..[eg-b967814, rva38310, etc etc..and you fought with your best friend for calling you names..and then you live to see this day..tsk..tsk..]
Age- imp coz the site offers you choices from 18-45yr..when you ve displayed the fact that you are not interested in child marriage and marrying someone who would qualify as your mother s friend!!
Ht and wt- search options vary from dwarfs to giants..take your pick! Deception guaranteed!!
Body type and complexion- the most subjective variable coz people write what they feel bout themselves which need not be necessarily the way the world perceives them..i had to fight with my parents when they mentioned me as fair…if im fair then the rest would automatically qualify as albinos…he he…
Physical status- tell the world whether you ve been there before or is this the first time!!...
Bld grp- thankfully only the ABO and Rh system is followed here! And if u happen to be Bombay blood group, u ve had it then!

RELIGIOUS INFORMATION>religion/caste/sub caste/gothram/zodiac/raasi/manglik/horoscope match

Religion- you can pick from Hinduism to Christianity ….this is one of the imp criteria of arranged match making..so preferably it should be the same as yours!
Caste and subcaste- never knew tat so many existed in india till now!! You can select from a wide range of 72 variables!! And then all those complicated stories that a maharastrian ‘Maratha’ boy will not marry a maharashtrian ‘Sonar’ gal… god bless the society coz they say-caste no bar!!!
Gothram/ Zodiac/Raasi- these are to narrow down your options from 100 to zero in one go… marry someone only with deba’ gana if u re rakshasha’ gana and who was born between 13th feb-13th march or in the month of may or from 15th sept to 15th nov..god…what the hell is this!
Manglik/ Horoscope match- by now if your options haven’t narrowed down to zero..now they will! You are given percentages.. Just as the good ole’ school-days when the results came out…!!! But unfortunately these are worse and getting first division in this regard..is a rarity..!!

LIFESTYLE> eating habits/drinking habits/smoking habits

Eating habits- vegetarian or non vegetarian…[but, no one mentions bout the extent to which she ll chew your brains after marriage!!]
Smoking/ drinking habits- most say ‘no’ to these…only to get addicted to them after marriage!!

LOCATION> country/state/city/ resident status/citizenship

This information discloses your NRI status and the capacity to earn in dollars..remember-‘ the dollar bahu, by sudha murthy’!!

PROFESSIONAL> education category/occupation/ employed in/ annual income

It is a bit ironical that the last measure i.e income tends to cover up for the inadequacies in the first two… shouldn’t be the case on ideal grounds..

FAMILY> family values/type/status/ancestral origin/fathers n mother s occupation/ no of brothers and sisters

An interesting read coz after school this is when you get to read histories [..again!!..] of individual families[..thus replacing Shivaji, Chandragupta Maurya, Ashoka ,Alexander the great!]. And all this, right from their ancestors [..who lived in the ICE age..!!] till the family tree which spans today..

ABOUT THE FAMILY/ FEW WORD S ABOUT YOURSELF AND WHAT YOU ARE LOOKING FOR!

This is where you realise why you had essay and précis writing in school.. everyone is expected to write an autobiography… without grammatical errors!
And then the lifelines-phone, message, chat, photos, reference, matrimony stamp!!!
Phew , that sure is something na!! plus the fact that after all this the site[ depending on where the head office is located..chennai, noida, etc etc] will give you loads to think about but from their own backyard..like it or not!

So, at CCD the other day.. we sat discussing what s going on in our lives.. since we were all in the same boat.. and then i realised how funny this whole thing was! Listening to the stories from the experienced ones makes you realise how you end up meeting the exact opposite of you by this method! And then you realise how different people are! Of course your GK improves but that’s not what you re looking for..isnt it?
So , being , the destiny believer that I am.. and the biggest lazybones’ when it comes to hunting for one[..as ANUP very aptly describes me!] I ve decided to chill… tension kai ko lene ka.. sahi boltay sahi boltay!!!
So let me just listen to the song that Supreet downloaded today which says-
Mera o mera chehraa,… hua mujshe anjaan kyun..kaun hu main ..ooooo
Awaaz to hai meri par kehta koi aur hai..
jhooti meri baatein aur saccha mera pyaar
Tu kya meri pehchaan hai..bolo na kya naam hai..
Call me dil..call me baby..call me jo naam tu mein wohi..
Call me sach toh mein saccha..Call me, chahe jhoota hi sahi…

AND also this lovely video-
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=144576538933230

Though this song has no relevance in this JUNK piece of work.. I just mentioned it simply because- I like it!!! He he…
And now I just heard that my OT s gonna start soon.. so I believe the good ole dayz re back.. and again the excuse that I ve no time should work…as always… !!!
Thanks for reading this extremely irritating and chauvinistic piece of work.. do not get carried away or pelt me with stones , the next time you see me…!! And that should make me happy..as always!!!
Goodbye……..