writeStuff

It was a long day at college. I was sitting in the library gazing past the window the sun was setting in beyond the horizon as I was penning down my thoughts. Few students were sitting down and reading in the library. It was closing time the housekeeping staff was cleaning the library floor as I was packing my bag. I left the library at six and started walking towards the station. Its a ten-minute walk from my college. Boarding the 6:12pm train back to Thane I stood inside the boggie amidst the crowd reading Neither Here Nor There by Bill Bryson. Thane station was abuzz with passengers, travelers traveling across places. It is one of the busiest stations on the central line. I walked down the busy street full of hawkers selling their goods, hurried crowd and rickshaws. I found a rickshaw, it ferried the passengers to and fro on a sharing basis. I was waiting for my co-passengers to join in. As I was thumbing Neither Here Nor There a veiled girl came towards the Rickshaw...

I started my climb but couldn’t find a grip on the black rock. Uncle’ climb was not the best example to imitate. I was trying to pull myself with my hands but the strategy was ineffective. “Use your legs, don’t use your hands,” Sanket shouted. But I couldn’t find any grip. “Walk along the rocks and lean behind,” Sanket shouted from up top. I kept one foot in the ridge and the other in another. I climbed the patch with my heart in my mouth. Slowly and steadily I climbed the rock patch. “Go to the top don’t wait here it’s getting dark,” Sanket said. I was walking along the rock as there was a steep fall towards my left. The steps leading to the top where completely exposed, but had ropes for support. I walked finding spots to place my foot and carefully made it to the inclined ascend, I continued on the path. It was getting darker by the minute, and there was no one around. I wanted to go back. “Run away,” the phony within said. “It’s easy to run away, but it is necessary to surge....

It was the month of February. I was trying to figure out what I want to learn for the rest of the year. Where does my peace lie, what makes me feel happy? Intuitively I was learning Scheme a variant of Common Lisp language that was created for research in Artificial Intelligence by John McCarthy. It was tough and hard to grasp. Tired with a steep curve of learning, I decided to go for a trek along with my friend Pranav. I called another friend of ours, Sanket he is a trekker at the core and arranges amazing trekking expeditions. Coincidentally has the same name as mine. It was decided that we would climb the Alang, Madan and Kulang Forts. The troika of three peaks situated in Nashik District in the state of Maharashtra. The forts known for their magnificence where built during the reign of Shivaji Maharaj the rugged entirety of the forts stands tall braving the ravages of time. Starting in the night Pranav and I got on the train leaving for Kasara. The train was filled with p...

It was the month of October and the heat was menacing. It was one of those phases where winter was round the corner but not yet there. I was in my freshman year and I had decided that I will be exploring the treks in the Sahyadri Range in Maharashtra. It stretches 1,600 Km in its entirety from Gujrat to Kerala. Jayesh one of my friends from the school called me “Let’s go for a trek to Chanderi Fort.” As I was in the groove for adventure I said, “yes!” though unsure of what was coming. But to have a complete experience I did my homework. I found out a few nuggets about the trek. Chanderi is a rugged black massif that is 800 meters high. Adjoining it is a group of four pinnacles called Mhasmal. Once an impenetrable fortress with strong walls. Today it finds itself in ruins due to the ravages of time. In May of 1656, Shivaji Maharaj had captured it from the Mughal Rule. The approach route is difficult with dense jungle and steep waterfall in between. With an average enduranc...

I had recently completed my unit test in the college and wanted to go out for a trek. But no trek was being organized in the following week. Just when the hopes of outdoors were sinking my friend Pranav called in and said, “Let’s go to Arun Samant Climbing Gym.” I said “Yes” spontaneously. It is a hub of Adventure Enthusiasts situated in Goregaon on the ground of Nandadeep High School. The gym has been built in the memory of Arun Samant, legendary Mountaineer and Climber, on May 31, 2003. Having completed his post graduation from IIT Bombay, Samant had an inclination towards nature and mountains. An accomplished and swift climber. He successfully completed many expeditions, scaled the pinnacles of virgin mountains. His zest for trekking was unparalleled and inspired many. Having decided to meet at Bhandup to get on the bus that leaves for Goregaon I was well on time. Pranav came in from Airoli. But since it was a Sunday the frequency of the buses was low and we couldn’t find ...

“I want your room to be clean.” Mother said on one fine holiday. It was a true fact that the room had become messy. I rolled my sleeves got out the vacuum cleaner and started dusting off the dust from shelves, corners of the wall, ceiling and bunch of places. In the attic, I found a bunch of old notebooks, well-thumbed magazines, and a journal. As I was leafing through the journal I found entries relating to a particular character I had written about. It was a first-person account of a boy. In the story he starts on an adventure and where do all adventures start, they start when everything goes haywire. Our friend finds himself in a similar situation. It's a journey where he tries to figure out the meaning of everything. As he tries to come to terms with the whys? that life throws. He entangles himself even more. Feeling lost as he is so near yet so far. ‘The pursuit of something brought me here,’ He thinks. ‘But what would it be that would take me there?’ He thinks. He begi...