Exploring the POSSIBLE MOMENTS to cross the road

Just in front of my Housing complex there is a grocery shop, but that is not very uncommon. Everywhere by the road side one finds a shop of any kind. Yesterday I went there to buy some essential items in the afternoon, say, twelve noon. That is also not very uncommon because someone has to go to the market to buy things.  After purchasing the things I was supposed to cross the road to enter into my Housing complex. Obviously the next logical step of mine was to cross the road, because I was standing just a crossing away from my Housing complex. Since there was huge traffic so I took enough time to cross the road. I was thinking how to cross the road and when to cross the road with two hands full of bags. Well, it is true that sometimes you have to stop thinking and looking for chances to cross the road—so I was looking for the POSSIBLE MOMENT to cross the road—there were Bikers, autos, cars, buses and my God!!! there were big trucks full of human beings going to join a  big rally.

There remained little possibility for me to cross the road.  But I have read somewhere in my book that crossing the road is encoded into every living being— be it cow, dog, cats, monkey, birds etc. and what to say of human beings. The circumstances come into being which causes the actualization of this potential happening, i.e. crossing the road. So I was sure that I would be able to cross the road immediately with my instinctive hunch. Otherwise if I go on gazing the road, the road will also gaze across me and I will be devoured by the road, no possibility of crossing will ever take place. Thus, I decided to cross the road with my instinctive ability. I took stock of the traffic and calculated the time and came to the conclusion with time premises in my hands that it will take enough time to get from one side to the other without being hit. Anyway I took the leap/jump and went ahead. But this time my instinctive calculation failed and I was left to struggle with the busy streets for my safety.

I moved forward with two bags full. I know that traffic jam on the road is an absolutely common event, so I moved backward in order to let the traffic pass smoothly. I thought it was wise to go little left and would find the place to stare and could wait for the clearing of the traffic. Alas!! There was auto-s standing to move out from the congested-lustrous-jam, so I could not cross from there too. Crossing the road becomes a major problem due to the increase of the fast moving vehicles on the road. Pedestrians have to suffer more to cross the road, which may lead to accidents also. Children are taught to have patience and they are encouraged to view all around and then cross safely. I remember that lesson of my childhood:

Stop, look and listen before you cross the street.

Use your eyes and use your ears before you use your feet.

Look to your left then look to your right

and to your left once more.

You must be really careful, that is what rules are for!

and started viewing all around, there was sea of vehicles of different variety. I began to look for a good one to buy a car of pretty colour.  The Road was difficult to cross, streets were overcrowded I could not even stand on the footpath which was too narrow. There was a tea stall and being tired I took a cup of tea and biscuit. By the time I finished my tea there was a big flow of vehicles once again.

With the passing of time, the problem becomes more severe, since there was no signal light. Now I calculated inter-arrival-gap-time between the vehicles. It was a real challenge and the possible remedy was to think afresh and plan a new strategy. Unfortunately there was no zebra line on the road. I kept looking for traffic and listening of the cacophony of horns. After half an hour I failed to gauge the speed of an approaching car, I ran half way to cross the road because the pressure of ‘not wanting to wait’ was mounting on me. And I thought probably, I did too much thinking, so I dare to walk. Something else was  written in my destiny, there were two bulls coming from the other side and the road was suddenly left for the bulls to wrestle I ran to the grocery shop once again to hide myself. 

There was no flat space to move because some work of PWD was going on the road so there was a gift of potholes and great tunnel-like was dug where fiber pipe line was inserted.  After the wrestling was over somehow, the referee, the local boys announced that road was clear and cars can move. I kept doing military foot exercise to soothe my numb and tired legs. I took grand sweeping decision and moved forward and lo! There was a shout from the driver-side. He took his head out from the car and started shouting, “Oh old lady! move aside, can’t you look, you will die on the spot.” There was a dead end. I had no choice but to stop and save myself to end up in the hole. Now, really I developed dromophobia/ agyrophobia. This is the road of your happiness which will pass away if you even venture to cross the road. Your long way to go and dream of a smooth passage of your life and beyond would come to an end here and now. My other mind was working on the theory that perhaps bump on the road is an opportunity to overcome challenges and it was the none other than the dangerous road that leads to the height of greatness, so I focused enough on the road. But my other mind was engaged with all wild stuff that crossing the road requires wings to move, to breath, to fly and to float, and what not!!

When I awoke from my deep slumber I stopped worrying about the potholes on the road—destination was tempting me just in front. The road was always there, it will be always there…but you have to decide when to cross the road and how to cross the road. Though, I thought that it is as simple as reading a book,  yet, no!! it was not easy; I realized crossing the open road requires complex skill. While reading a book you have to read from the open lines of the book to the author’s mind by crossing the rushing traffic of varied syntactico- semantico relationship of words. But here you have to learn the skill of driver’s mind to the speed of the car to the social and political occasion, time, place and mood of the road too. With these variables in my hands I got into my Zen rhythm and I went with the flow of the vehicles and people. Finally, I took the hardest decision of my life and it worked as a therapeutic venture–– power of crossing the road. I did not cross the road I just transcended it !!! My friends !!!