Stuck at home...again

I'm writing this post on the 8th of september (that sounds lame). I've been feeling guilty for a while for not updating my blog and I don't have much to do, so here's an update from my end.

Let's start with the title of this post. Why am I home? Oh, the epidemics currently travelling in the city of Delhi decided to pick on a student of 11th class. One who gets frantic if she has to miss school, doesn't like covering up missed work and is worried about half yearly exams on Monday. Just her luck. Here's how it started (and in case you don't feel like reading a sick diary, feel free to skip to the end):

• My diary says that the symptoms started on the...30th. The day started off with a bodyache, headache and temperature. Of course, my family insisted I stay home and after a lot of protest, I had to agree. I did feel guilty as I knew that I might miss work, but I optimistically hoped that I wouldn't miss too much. In the meantime, I sat at home, lazily watching a movie on TV while announcements in school (I live right across my school) kept on blaring. I even sat home making up theories for the symptoms: basketball, stress and a heavy school bag 

• On visiting the doctor, I was told (to my horror) that I had viral fever. To add to the experience, the doctor told me to stay home for three days and take about five different medicines every day. Now let me say it straight away: I don't like swallowing medicines. I think it's a deep seated fear of choking. However a girl's got to do what a girl's got to do. So I just had to take those coin sized pills. On the bright side though, all symptoms vanished with the first dosage. But I knew perfectly well I wouldn't be allowed to go to school until three days were over.

• I spent the next three days in my words "going up and down the stairs like a restless spirit". Luckily, I also took out time to read a few new books and do a little study as well. I eventually came to the conclusion that I really did need a break from my studies. But I was sure that all the peace of mind I would've gained would vanish once I returned to school. Besides, I was getting a little cranky stuck at home.

• The 2nd (janamashtami) was my last holiday before I returned to school. I returned to school on the 3rd to enquiries from several students wondering why the padaku of the class had vanished for three weekdays. Yes there was work to cover up, but I managed eventually. But that's when the next problem came on...

CONJUNCTIVITIS

And now to end that little story, NOW I'm stuck at home with conjunctivitis a.k.a. eye flu. The red eyes and the swelling started yesterday in school and I'm on leave today. I'm stuck home with red, swollen, itchy, streaming eyes feeling cranky...again, this time along with my whole family. This time I don't have any pills to swallow, but now I have something more menacing - eye drops! Fortunately, I don't have to worry about covering up any work since only revision is going on in the school right now. But still...now I'm stuck at home AGAIN ! So here follows the rant of a little girl who doesn't think she's studied properly for exams. (Disclaimer: Whether she's right or wrong remains to be seen):

I have so many chapters to cover! If I can't even read, how the heavens am I going to prepare? It's Maths on Monday and I haven't practised well enough. It's Political Science on Thursday and I've haven't even read all the chapters. I don't even feel like studying. Great, after all this, I'm preparing to fail? Aaaarrrgghhhh...
End Rant

Ah well. Moving on...

And now, after a very long time, here is not one, but three pieces of 55 fiction:

Old age

She’d gone through myriad experiences: Regretted, celebrated, cherished and fleeting.

She’d felt different things: Fear, happiness, excitement, despair, confusion, admiration, anger, kindness…

And yet she wondered,

Had she achieved her purpose?

She’d made her choices. And she had given her best, she smiled. Life was what she thought it was.

And now it was over.

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A choice

There was too much to do. Why? He had decided before that this was too important. He trusted his past judgment. But how to do it?

He toiled on, thinking about the loss, the pain, the past...

Finally, he screamed, “Enough!”  

And the door slammed behind him.

Why? There was a life to be lived. 

------------------------------------------------

Inevitable

In his 15 years, he’d never seen it. 

Others were working in the field. No one noticed the cloud climbing the hill. Usually, he would’ve celebrated Indra’s generosity. Not now.

Lives would be lost and destroyed. Great fuss would be caused. But it would cease, and they would be left alone.

The flood came closer…

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Here are links to two great articles I've found:

1. http://37signals.com/svn/posts/2538-the-first-step-is-to-start - A great article called "the first step is to start"

2. http://in.news.yahoo.com/columnist/anand_ramachandran/7/a-plan-to-save-the-commonwealth-games - A great satire on our very own Commonwealth games

Got to go, time for the eye drops. Hope I'll get well quickly.
Take care of your health folks, and have a great week!