Sometimes I wish I could leave well alone. I wish I could be indifferent to things and the actions of people and just walk away! I tell myself that my life would be so much less complicated, if I could do just that, if I could just ignore stuff instead of letting it get to me till something inside me yells, “Aata majhi satakli!”
A couple of months ago, I had gone to the bank for some work. By the time I came out, the entrance to the bank had been totally blocked by bikes. There was absolutely no way to get out. An old man stood there on the steps looking utterly confused and bewildered.
I took one look at the bikes and went back into the bank. “Can some of you please move your bikes?” I requested, “There is no way for people to go out.”
One of the customers leered at me and said in a hearty voice, “Then you will just have to wait till we finish our work, won’t you?” This was said in Marathi, in that typical condescending tone that males reserve when they are think they are dealing with helpless females and it evoked a round of smug laughter. I don’t what it was , but something inside me snapped.
I looked around with narrowed eyes and without a word, calmly walked out. I went to the line of bikes and gave the one nearest to me a hefty shove to the right. It toppled on to the bike next to it, creating a domino effect. I turned to the left and repeated the action with the bike there too. Oh it was so satisfying to see all the bikes go down!
Feeling terribly pleased with myself, I dusted off my hands dramatically as I ignored the yells of “Oh Madam, tumhi kay karta ahat?”, as people rushed out of the bank.
I held out my hand to the bemused old man, gave him a cheeky smile and helped him out on to the main road. “Thank you madam!” he said with a chuckle, “Oh, the look on their faces!”
Two days later when I visited the bank again, I was pleasantly surprised to see that they had created a pathway to the entrance lined with potted plants on either side, with a big ‘No Parking’ sign prominently displayed. When I commented on it to the Manager, he said, “What to do, Madam? If we have customers like you, we have to do things like this no?”
So I guess it was worth losing my cool after all.
Have you ever lost your cool? I’d love to hear what it takes for you to feel, “Aata majhi satakli”. Do tell us about it in the comments on the website.