7:00 pm: I am all set for the long weekend and I have a big smile on my face. I leave for home from work. Just when I pull the car (slowly) outside the office gate, a speeding bus crosses my path. The driver makes some weird action with his hands asking me to get out of his way.
7:05 pm: I wait to get across the road. Dodging a few vehicles I manage to get on the other side. Phew! It looked as if I was never going to make it.
7:15 pm: I am at the signal which is bang opposite my office. I remember that I left something at my desk. The traffic is moving so slow that I can just get down, go and get it from my desk. But, I’m too lazy, so I wait.
7:30 pm: I’m at the signal. I think I moved a few inches ahead. Or, maybe not! I’m hungry! I remember I have an apple in my bag which I forgot to eat in the morning. I’m so proud of my bad memory at times. I notice that the people around me stare as I eat the apple. Well, I don’t care but it’s creepy! I ignore and tell myself that probably they are hungry too.
7:35 pm: Woohoo! The signal turns green and I manage to move ahead only to get stuck again in a few metres. The impatient guy in the car honks non-stop. The dude thinks that the honking is miraculously going to give wings to my car. I secretly wish that too!
7:50 pm: We are all moving slowly. Everyone wants to go first. Indicators are ignored shamelessly. Buses move from one lane to another as if there’s no one else on the road. Rear view mirrors are sparingly used for the real reason. I believe people look into them only when they have to “set” their hair. Girls ride the two-wheelers so carelessly wearing their only head gear; the oh-so-famous scarf tied all around the face to protect the face from pollution and heat. I see a “cool dude” enjoying the wind that touches his face when he rides his sporty bike while his helmet is used to protect his arm. Well, who cares about the head and the brain! Helmets serve no purpose, right?
There’s no way a person who is walking and wants to get across the road, can comfortably do it without running for his life. While waiting at the signal, the car standing behind me honks. I think he misunderstood the concept of law of attraction.
We blame the roads, the pot holes, the traffic management. But, we never blame ourselves. We have all the rules, but either we are not aware of them or we ignore them. We have taken “Rules are meant to be broken” too seriously. Having said that, the person who follows the rules can never manage to drive safely in this chaos. It’s shocking, but true!
8:30 pm: I reach home after enjoying my one and an half hour drive which is only a 20 minutes drive minus the traffic ��
Thank you,
Garshita Gupta| thegleeinme.com
