The last minute trip
After an extremely awkward and humiliating farewell on the evening of 26 January of which I would not like to talk about here, I was sitting at home crying my eyes out. I tried to sleep it off but the desired sleep never came to me. I was continuously haunted by what had happened. Though I must point out here, the batch of class eleven had put up a phenomenal show and so many of the people I knew were in tears.
But after a hurricane comes a rainbow. The destruction caused by a hurricane can not be cleared in a day but the rainbow sure can help you cope with the PTSD. The next day while I was still in my pajamas and my hair was all entangled, my mother comes to me and tells me that Sudhir uncle (Director IIT Gandhinagar) wants me to come to Ahemdabad and basically talk about Professor Michel Danino in honour of him receiving the Padma Shri. At that time I refused. I mean I had just woken up and was still in a very groggy state. Also for me, it was one of the scariest ideas ever suggested.
The thing I did not realise is that he was being serious. Around 11.30am uncle called again. Without thinking much I agreed this time with absolutely no idea what I'm going to do once I reach there or HOW I'm going to reach there. I was told I have ten minutes to get ready and pack. I took five minutes to take a bath while my mother collected all my stuff and books and threw it in a bag. By 11.50am I should say we were in the car. My flight was at 1.25pm and it usually takes one hour thirty minutes to reach T3 from my place. So my mother and I had decided that even if I miss the flight we will consider it a successful day as we got to drive on one of the best routes as considered by me and also get to resume our 'lunch date' that we had been planning.
I received my ticket and check in details while in the car. I had my phone in one hand and comb in the other as I was trying to make myself look at least a bit civilized. We reached the airport by 12.40pm. This trip bestowed upon me the realisation that whenever we are in a hurry or getting late. The shortest line for entering the airport had at least ten other people in front of me. But the line "bhaiya meri flight hai 1.25 par" worked for this obstacle and the next. The next obstacle was a line of almost double the size at the check in counter.
I already had checked in but still, I needed a boarding pass. The third obstacle was the encounter at the counter with an extremely rude Jet airways person who would not give me my boarding pass. And for the first time I took up a verbal fight, the kinds aunties do when the vegetable vendor does not give them free dhaniya. Well, she relented because she finally snapped out of her world when she realised I already had checked in. Although she didn't let go easily. She made this wonderful remark about how she "hoped" I catch my flight as it will not wait for me.
The security again had a long line and my poor puppy face did not work this time. Not only that I had, when I was finally called for security they told me to take out my boots and put it for scanning. That was darn irritating. But the hardships were not yet over. I wore the left boot on my right foot and the right boot on my left foot and I did not realise it until I broke off in a run. I have always loved T3 but never ever before thought of how enormous and wide spaced it is. Also, the departure gate was one of the last in the domestic terminal. I ran and ran. ( I actually ran, something which I never do) Can someone imagine a girl like me running with tickets and other papers in a folder in one hand, with a thick jacket in the other, a bag which was definitely above five - six kilograms and wearing the wrong boots on the wrong feet?
When I reached the departure gate, the Jet people told me that I need not have worried as the flight was delayed by fifteen minutes and the gates would not close for another 15-20 minutes. It was 1.10pm at that moment. I was quite infuriated at that time. I was hungry as ever I am, totally out of breath and extremely thirsty. I missed the favourite part of the T3 experience - buying MOD doughnuts and the limited amount of free wifi - and had strained my muscle by running faster than PT Usha with no warm up before hand all because of that haughty female staff member.
But all's well that ends well. I could catch my flight even with so many obstacles and reach the IIT campus in time and deliver what I call my first ever speech on such a huge public platform. I am ever thankful for my stars that I could break some parts of the introvert shell before school ended.
Link to the whole speech video: https://www.facebook.com/surabhi.sanghi/videos/vb.100003006154888/1045990342177828/?type=2&theater
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