Junctions of Surprises

So many things have happened in the past few months that I had almost lost track of time. Since my lonely days from summer came to a conclusion as September came along, I had actually found new ways to write and finish incomplete poems, thoughts and actions from my past. These past few days have a been a little above average, a little MORE special and memorable indeed. Let's start with Friday, the day when I was eager that I had the chance to finally skip the entire afternoon from school to go and hang out with friends and shoot pool. Somehow, I ended up among the others in the school to watch the assembly which was screening a low budget film about one of the oldest problems of our society- racism. At first blush, it seemed unnecessary, redundant and almost boring until I went from just hearing the audio to listening to the true vibe of the narration. It was actually quite amazing. At the end, I got a chance to meet with the director, Mr. Paul Saltzman. He is an amazing artist who encapsulates an entire problem in our world, with today's time and circumstance and an original way to not only stop this but solve this. My first surprise was the realization that I was having the chance to talk to the mastermind of such a story. The second was to learn how simply he was able to talk about the solutions to the 'apparently' almost-impossible-to-solve kind of problems. My final surprise for that day was when he pulled out his business card and asked me to write for him because he found my interpretation of his message a little bit intriguing I guess. Was it really? I don't know.. But the gesture was enough to get me feeling important and a little more worthy too. The days that followed involved dancing, meeting friends, being sore and finishing up work. This was because it was one of the most hectic yet enjoyable weekends yet. It is 'navratri', the festival of the nine nights of dancing. So, I went to the temple in Richmond Hill with my family to celebrate the third official night but for me, the first night. I didn't actually expect to dance since I was feeling tired prior to walking in the temple but a couple of my friends caught a glimpse of me and insisted on me to dance along so it turned out to be another crazy night again. I didn't know when I would see them again so I decided to seize the moment.. I surprised myself there, that's not very much like me to as spontaneous as I was that day. I guess times have changed me. The next day was resting and working where I accidentally wrote an essay 4X longer than the requested word limit. The teacher was the one who was surprised at this though since she couldn't understand how I had so much to say about community service being a vital role in the educational system.. haha.. And then the Sunday brought the second october again, the Gandhi Jayanti. Incidentally, my cousin decided to invite us over for 'navratri' that night so we went over and joined in on the dancing at his house again since it was his first navratri after getting married earlier this year in July. As Monday came along, I thought the surprises would come to a conclusion but I guess I was just unstoppable since the calculus test surprised me that it actually was easier than I anticipated. I finished early AND got an extra twenty minutes to check over. So, that was a very convenient start to my Monday. But the biggest and most unexpected guest waited for me at home when I returned. I twist the metal key in the lock, twist the doorknob, and push the door and there it was.. on the coffee table! I quickly made my way there and found that the submission that I was complaining about (in my head) to which I thought was futile since I wanted to publish that piece in the publication that my English teacher at school suggested. SURPRISE! I actually got a letter from that online poetry contest and they said they considered my poem as a semi-finalist in the International Open Poetry Contest! I could barely believe what my eyes had just 'claimed' to read. It took me a minute to realize that they weren't deceiving me and it was the truth. So, now I have the shot at winning some prize in this 'World Poetry Movement' and I may have some work which gets published in the hard cover, leather bound publication of 'Stars In Our Hearts'! So, I hope this good luck, good fortune and surprises continue and find their ways from me to one and all as well.

Love,
Devarsh