RD musings

Yesterday was a special day. For the first time, me and my son watched the Republic Day parade together.

All these years when I used to wake him up early, he would just roll off again to sleep. But this year he had asked me repeatedly to wake him early. Why? Because his school teacher had explained how good the parade is and asked all of them to watch it. So what I had been trying to do all these years was done by a single lecture by the teacher 😀 But then that is effective teaching.

I remember rushing home from school to watch the parade on TV. My father and me would sit side by side watching the tableau while he explained each one. Now and then he would tell some story of the freedom struggles. Oh, what joy….what pride.

In the intercepting years I have felt the pride of being an Indian dwindling not only in me but in youngsters nowadays. While I see the Bahrainis or British talk with so much pride for their motherland; the same pride I do not see in fellow countrymen.

And here I was watching the parade with my son. ‘Do we have so many states?’, he asked. I said ‘yes’ and then proceeded to explain a little about each state.

Then came the BSF jawans on the bike and he watched with his mouth agape. And I felt waves of happiness as I saw the same pride and incredibility on his face which I always have while watching the parade.

And then it was all over and the National Anthem began to play and yes I still get goosebumps when I hear the music.

He was silent. I asked why. It was AWESOME, he said.

But then India is AWESOME, isn’t it.

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