World Friendship Day - Aug05, 2012

Friendship day

As a single child I grew up in a old city of Eastern part India, with a lot of my cousins of different age groups. But, that hardly used to matter anyways. The team also used to include cousins' cousins and their friends as an extended part of the joint family. All were friends, to do a lot of planned activity, to get scolded later from elders. Also, there was a lot of fight, shouting and yelling while playing, which also used to end only after some scolding from any of the elders. After few years, the group size only increased, as few school friends were also added and very soon became a part in the group of friends. 

As I can see that 'Friendship day' started in 1935, when US congress dedicated the day to honor friends. But, that was not the age of Internet, it was transistor radio, which was the source of important news only, so in India this was not known almost.

Time changed, as we all grew up and then came to some serious life, work to earn. The office colleagues came in our lives and few became friends and some remained acquaintances only. Some of my cousins got married and got busy in the race of life, some moved outside the city or country and life moved on. But, the childhood bond remained the same and that was strong enough like tall pillars tied with steel ropes. One still can count on the other. In the age of cellular and internet, we are still connected in the web of our minds and share almost the same bond of childhood, depending on the closeness, which increased or decreased for reasons, over the years. We still can bridge the distance each individual is.

Then came the 'Mall culture' only few years back and the kids started celebrating all occasions  may that be a 'Friendship day', 'Birthday party' or 'Valentine's day', 'Father's day' or 'Mother's day' or just for fun in different malls. The muddy playgrounds of our childhood, where as children we used to play football or cricket the whole afternoon, in any weather, after school, has now either become a huge Mall or a huge  modern residential complex, for any hangout. So perhaps that is the reason in this age and later, they would need to remember friends on a particular 'Friend's day' only. In the era of commercialization, all these days also translate to a big business.

But, even today when I try to remember friends, to my mind I see a lot of faded faces, whom I have not met for years, some have gone up very high in life and some couldn't. Some also left world at a very young age, but their faces I remember, like the same way as I met them last. At some time, all these faces used to be a close part of my daily life. May that be a cousin, or cousins' cousin or  school or a college friend.

Like any other day I wish them all, lots of peace and love, where ever they are, not only on this 'friendship day', but for every single day in their lives !