I wish

It didn’t feel any different. And this surprised me. I had gone to sleep as a teenager. And as I got up that day, rubbing the eyes out of my sleep, it seems I accidentally rubbed off the tiny two digits 1 and 9 and woke up as a bleary eyed 20 year old.

Suddenly realizing that as college students, we couldn’t afford the luxury of early morning self contemplation, I hurriedly got ready and rushed to attend an 8 am lecture on Heat Balance Dynamics. Oh the joys of life! 

The monotonous droning of the professor kept pushing me towards the wonderful world of dreams and it seemed the wooden desk had developed strange magnetic abilities as it was constantly pulling my head towards it. In this epic see saw battle of push and pull, which strangely were directed in the same direction, I was losing.

Thud! 

“Who was that?” 

“You on the first bench?”

“Sir, No Sir, Yes Sir”

“Argghh, sit down and keep your eyes open will you. Now coming back, the exothermic reaction has released 10 KJ of heat…..” 

Phew. 

Maybe it was the head bang or the quiet 1 minute of terror I just braved, I woke up. In every sense possible. 

I looked around. Half asleep classmates that looked half dead due to the weight of the lecture. 

Attending class because they wanted attendance. Staying awake because they wanted reputation. The room was swarming with knowledge. But it just hung in mid air. Because the source was not delivering it with passion. And the recipients were rejecting it with an equal intensity. 

I was one of them. This thought revolted me. 

I had just crossed that invisible barrier into adulthood. Was I ready to carry my baggage of indifference and apathy towards my own self with me to the other side? 

No 

NO. 

Suddenly a shrill voice penetrated this inner sanctum of thoughts. I could hear the words. 

Heat. 

Teenage rebellion. Lack of responsibilities. I don’t care attitude. 

Balance.

Self awareness. Being honest to oneself. Taking control of one’s destiny. 

Dynamics 

Responsibility towards family, society, peers. 

I embraced the new sense of responsibility I felt. The overnight change came during this daytime one hour lecture. To do everything in life with passion but with responsibility. This was the best lecture I had attended. 

It made me grow up. 

Trinnnnng. 

Oh no! I am late for that 8 am lecture on Heat Balance Dynamics! 

Like everyone else.