1st august 2006, a special day for me and all those 1st year students of a very little known engineering college Manohar bhai patel Institute of Engineering and Technology (M.I.E.T). It was the first day of our engineering and hostel life. I along with other first year students were standing with our head bent down, eyes pointing towards our toes as the seniors spoke about the rules and regulations of 1st year students. One of the final year senior was leading the show with his animated gestures. I was dumbstruck when he spoke the following lines.
“Five rules to be fulfilled by one and all to be an engineer”. Senior further said It may look absurd to you now but when you will leave this hostel after 4 years, you all will give the same directions to the first year students then. These are the basic guidelines once fulfilled you would become an ideal engineer and would enjoy your hostel life like never before.
1) You should give slangs as if you are reciting poems. Abusive words should be in your tongue whenever you open your mouth to speak. Mind it carefully; it’s applicable when you are talking with your batch mates and not to the seniors.
2) Drinking and smoking is a must. It’s the unique quality of engineers that separate them from any other field.
3) You should have a girlfriend not of a kind with whom you spend your entire life but a time pass for these 4 years.
4) Biking; you should drive bikes with almost no care of traffic or the people around. Ideal case would be driving at midnight at the weekends at full speed.
5) Last but not the least you should at least have one backlog in your engineering career.
These instructions were followed by other rules that we had to follow during our 1st one year. That was the day when I was more optimist about my 4 years ahead with lots of dreams and lot many things to be done.
Today when there’s only few weeks left in my hostel life. I am back in those days when seniors told about those ‘5 rule’. I didn’t fulfill any of those rule does that mean I didn’t enjoy my days out here or does that mean I didn’t become an ideal engineer that everyone is speaking of?
I enjoyed and would be missing these 4 years like anybody else. It would be difficult to explain what exactly I would miss so here I am narrating a typical day of my engineering life.
4:00 am I was glued to the computer screen typing something. My room mate entered the room after having a long chat with his girlfriend.
Roommate: Anjan you still awake? What are you doing? You have been typing since 9:30 pm
Me: nothing much writing a blog.
Roommate: you have classes tomorrow. You can complete your blog some other time go and sleep.
Me: I am on the verge of completion of this blog. I would be sleeping after I complete this blog. You have a nap and don’t forget to wake me up in case you wake before I do.
Roommate: ok! Goodnight.
12:15 pm (afternoon)
Roommate: Anjan wake up
Me: what’s the time?
Roommate: it’s 12:15
Me: oh god my classes. I missed the DSD (digital system design) class. I have to be present there for my optical class from 12:30
I ran to the college after freshening up and reached the college when the roll call was being made.
After the attendance
Mam: today we would be discussing about splicing of optical fiber cable.
I to one of my friend
Me: I have heard about the word slice and then I have heard about sprite where does this word splice come from?
Mam overheard me and said Anjan it seems you have something to speak on this topic.
Me: Mam. Actually I am hungry. I couldn’t have my breakfast because I was bit late for my breakfast.
Mam: when did you wake up?
Me: Mam 20 minutes back
Mam: (irritated) sit down and don’t create any nuisance in the class otherwise you would be spending the entire period in the canteen.
Me: sorry Mam
Within 40-45 minutes everyone again started gossiping
Mam: what happened to you all still 15 minutes left for the period?
Mam again saw me narrating something to my friend
Mam: Anjan what’s the matter?
Me: Mam, cricket match between India and Srilanka. I just got the sms that India won the toss and is batting. Everyone wants to go and see the match.
Mam: you people will never improve anyways I am in no mood to teach. you all can go.
After the lunch interval in the advanced microprocessor practical class
Mam: today you have to perform the 4th experiment
After 15-20 minutes
Me: at last I did it, the program is running
Friend: please check the match scores internet is connected.
Me: ok, it’s 120 for 1, no it’s a four it’s 124 for 1
Mam: Anjan what’s going on there?
Me: (hurriedly closing the Cricinfo site) Mam program 4 is running successfully.
Mam: nothing to get excited, show me the program. By the way what’s the score?
Me: Mam it’s 124 for 1.
Mam: go and watch the match without disturbing the people around here
Me: Mam attendance?
Mam: I have already marked you. If you speak another word you will be marked absent.
Me: …
Mam: Anjan get out.
In the T.V room
Let me first describe about the T.V room. It’s big enough to accommodate 70-80 people but whenever there’s any match more then 150 people gather there and the atmosphere after each boundary and each wicket seems as if we are in cricket stadium with people screaming after each ball with banners supporting their favourite team. The entire atmosphere is unimaginable unless you have seen a cricket match in the stadium.
India scored 276/5 in 50 overs, Srilanka in the reply started brilliantly were 80/0 after 13 overs. We thought it’s useless to watch the match so I along with few of my friends went to the court (often called as tennis court) but the interesting thing about this court is that cricket is being played here instead of tennis. After playing there for 1 hour news came from the T.V room that Harbhajan took 3 wickets and India are on top. We left the court and went back to the T.V room. India won the match eventually.
It was around 9:30 pm I was watching the post match presentation when my room mate called me.
Roommate: where the hell are you?
Me: watching the post match presentation.
Roommate: we are supposed to go out for the birthday celebration of your other roommate.
Me: you dress up I am coming in 5 minutes.
I along with 5 of my friends went out to the restaurant for the dinner. The dinner was superb everyone had drinks along with chicken. I was the exception being vegetarian & had mango juice instead of alcohol. It was around 11:30 pm we all decided to go and watch the night show (12:00 am to 3:00 am). The movie was ‘Pyar Impossible’. I thought the script writer of the movie stole the script form my life anyways the movie was superb. We reached hostel at around 4:00 am.
It was just a flashback of what I am going to miss in my future life. It’s not everyday that I spent my days like this but it’s just a reflection of how I enjoyed my life in those 4 years. It doesn’t have to be party every time there are many small things right from bunking classes, irritating the lecturers, having lunch in the mess along with friends, knocking bathroom in the morning, night walk in the college compound, eating vegetable rolls at 3-4 am in the night canteen, indoor cricket tournaments, practical class entertainment, birthday bumps to friends (I don’t celebrate my birthday anymore), festival celebration be it ID or Holi, discussing about life with roommates throughout the night. There are many more things that I am going to miss but the most is the entire hostel environment.
I am falling short of words in addressing what I am actually feeling today. So I am taking the words of the telugu movie ”happy days”. The 4 years of hostel /college is the happiest moment of one’s life. It’s not the end but the beginning of more purposeful life ahead.
Many of us would think what I achieved in these 4 years. To be frank no one comes here to achieve anything it’s just to increase the capacity to achieve in future. Hostel life is not about studies but it teaches us many basic things. After these 4 years we realize things in much better way be it friendship, what is right and what is wrong, what’s the meaning of helping people who are in need, what is caring for friends, what is sacrifice and the most important thing that i have learnt is to live for the happiness of others. I know it all after these 4 years.
Hostel indeed a second home to all of us. When I am just thinking about leaving this place tears are again coming out of my eyes but it’s a different reason now. I would miss my hostel warden Pandey sir who looked after us just as a parent would look for their child. It’s because of the attachment with the people of hostel and its atmosphere I really don’t want to go away from this place. It’s a place where I became the Anjan I am now. I never paid any heed to those ‘5 rules’ but my feelings for this hostel are like anybody else. It’s the bonding with this environment that makes me feel I am going to miss something important in my life ahead.
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