“All the world's a stage,

And all the men and women merely players” - William Shakespeare

Lights, camera & action ! -

Born on 1st of feb 1987, I was quite excited about the world out there so couldn’t wait to come out. Born prematurely, I was put in a glass box. Doctors told my mom i wouldn't make it. But hey, won the 1st race of my life already so why give up now? i made it through.

“At first, the infant,

Mewling and puking in the nurse's arms.” - William Shakespeare

The Boy -

Grew up in a small town named Mangalore, India.The air was clean and the well water was cold always .Green grass , blue skies, Oh what a wonderfull world .

Nothing fancy !! Just played with stick and stones and broke my bones.i was a dreamer, i could live them everyday, because i realized that reality was to normal for me, we all are born for greatness.

Curiosity kicked in -

I guess i was about 3 to 4 years old when my mom and aunt were traveling to Australia. The taxi had come to pick them up and i wanted to go along. They told me i couldn't. So i snuck into the boot of the taxi, but my aunty found me. I can still recall the conversation.

Me: can i please come along?

mom : no, you wont be able to come with us !

me : why, not?

mom: you are too small , and we will need to take a plane there.

me: what is a plane ??

mom : Plane is something that takes us into the sky, she replied and laughed.

i was mad at them for not taking me along.I looked up to the sky and imagined Australia must be somewhere up there. An idea struck me!

I got hold of a shovel and started digging. By the end of what seemed like a whole day i had dug a hole waist deep. Eventually my grandma decided to come out only to find me in that pit . Terrified, she asked me why i was digging?

Still angry, i told her i was trying to open a hole into the sky below. my grandma who was now more confused just raised an eyebrow and demanded an explanation. So i narrated my conversation with mom and told her about genius idea ‘if Australia was up in the sky, that meant there were more countries stacked one above the other and if i dug deep enough i might just find a whole new country below’.

My grandma laughed and pulled me into an embrace and tried explaining to me the geography of the earth.

The Foreigner -

My family moved to the middle East while i was in my 2nd grade. Spent about 16 years of my life there, out of which 14 years were spent in malls and cafes. Life was perfect. Everything from food, games, clothes was amazing! I was living the LIFE .

“Then the whining schoolboy, with his satchel

And shining morning face, creeping like snail” - William Shakespeare.

The Holiday -

I needed a break! Being an 18 year old hot blooded teen was a task. Drugs, fights on the street and fights at home with dad got worse. it was all too much to handle. So i decided to go back to India ( mangalore ) for a holiday.

I was amazed to see the broken roads, people living on the streets, the cows, dogs running around, so much chaos. Nothing was prefect anymore and surprisingly i hadn’t felt so alive in ages.

I realized i was living a spoon fed life in a perfectly managed Aquarium all this while and this place was the Ocean. Six months down I decided I wasn't going back. My family took a while but eventually agreed. Mom started visiting me often, and my relation with my dad was exactly where i had left it.

“Then a soldier, Full of strange oaths and bearded like the pard, Jealous in honor , sudden and quick in quarrel, Seeking the bubble reputation” - William Shakespeare.

The Visitor -

Got a call from mom that she and my dad were coming down to see me. Honestly, as excited as i was, i wasn't looking forward to seeing him.

I remember the day he got home, i was in my room. I could hear all the shuffling but didn’t go downstairs to say hello. my ego was bigger than my ass!

I slipped out of my house while my dad was resting. Anything to not see him. I got home late that night and rushed upstairs only to find my dad awake, unpacking. He looks at me n asks about my day and how i was doing.

I looked away and started walking to my room. “Whatever it is, be good. Don’t drink and smoke” he said.

Unknown to him, I used to drink and smoke already and it didn’t matter what he thought.

The Plague -

Darkness creeped over the city consuming people it got hold of, I could hear people screaming and running for their lives while I was hide in my room. All of a sudden i could see it come towards me through my window.

Everything turned dark and soon i was consumed by it. I coughed and coughed until i choked.

I startled awake from my nightmare. I was drenched in sweat. I looked at my clock and it was time for college.

I got home that evening all ready to sneak up to my room when mom told me dad was out with his friends. Later that night i got a call from one of this friends, “Come quick! Your father got into a fight and shot someone”.

OH crap !

I woke my mom up and told her what had happened and i told her we shouldn’t go and let him take care of his own mess.

She forced me to take her. As we walked towards my dads car, i could see a man’s figure resting on the steering wheel. I thought my dad shot my driver. We went up close and my mom burst into tears. I realized it was my father who had been shot in the head. Blood all over the place. Its funny how life can just flow out of you in a matter of minutes. He was gone!! All i could remember in the past year of not speaking to him was his last words to me “don't smoke, don't drink”.

i couldn't cry , tears didn't roll out of my eyes , i am cursed that way, i cant cry! i cant get rid of my pain but just have to live with it.

How it feels to consumed by your own ego? that i couldn't just forgive or forget and make peace with my father and now he no more!

That was the plague, that darkness was my ego that consumed me. it made my mind a bad place to be in , constantly reminding me, what type of man i had become.

Its funny how, many of us waste time everyday being angry with someone or being egoist or stubborn, is it all worth in the end when you realize that life can be lost just in seconds. Life is too short for all that darkness, its time we embrace the light and spread the love ,which is the real purpose of us being here on earth.

“Last scene of all,

That ends this strange eventful history, - William Shakespeare.

To be continued…..