Goodbyes To The Pranksters And The Wise Men

No matter how old you think you’ve grown, no matter how mature, Goodbyes will always be difficult.

I can’t believe that almost a year has passed since I joined this institute called IIM Kozhikode. It was a land of dreams for me, a sea of opportunity lay ahead, yet it was a place I had come to after bidding my farewell to a lot of friends and family with whom I’d probably only get the chance to meet after 2 long and busy years. For the next two years, this was going to be my home. A home that was constantly putting you through one challenge or another and for the first month there was absolutely no time to sit back and relax. It was all competitions, submissions, networking, assignments, sessions, workshops and some more, with no ending to be seen anytime soon. It was that time of the year when seniors will make you work harder than your CAT preparations but also come to your rescue.

From their pranks to their wisdom, they have been like this invisible guiding hand that is there on your head, there to show the way, sometimes even without asking. From that time, we have moved on to the present when they are packing their bags and are all set to venture into this new world of corporate. Everywhere you can see courier boxes and tapes, the corridors are filled with sad parting songs and we are giving farewell parties front, back and centre. This college is famous for being the party campus, however, this time around the parties are bringing with them a feeling of emptiness.

Also, while we all have had the opportunity to meet with these awesome seniors everyone has that one special senior with whom they are extremely close. And I am dedicating this Goodbye to my favourite senior, Richard Sir (don’t worry, in this college we don’t have the culture of calling our seniors Sir or Ma’am). I came across him as he was the senior of two of my friends. I had heard a lot about him even before I knew that I was going to join IIM Kozhikode. Finally, the day I entered this college was the day I was going to meet this legend whose stories I had been hearing for so long. We met in front of D-landing (area in front of D hostel) where he was standing leaning on his bike. The first conversation was nothing special, just some small talk and then he went off in his Bullet. I don’t know what I was feeling after coming to the college, while it was definitely the place I wanted to be, I was confused and scared of what lay ahead, and here was the one person who could give me some insight and he also went off. I just called my friend who had asked me to meet him and told him that I didn’t like anything about him, going as far as calling him Bewda (based on his looks. I know, judgemental me).

From that day on to this day, I can say that all those stories I had heard about this legend were definitely true. He is this amazingly warm person who can get along with anyone, has solutions to every problem, and is always chilled and relaxed about everything. With him around, you won’t know the meaning of the word worry. But right now all those feelings of nostalgia of saying goodbyes, the confusion of what will happen next, and the anticipation of when we’ll meet again has come back. Because like every senior, Richard Sir will also be leaving. They are going to embark into a new and exciting world, but all of us (seniors and juniors) have this feeling of missing something or the other associated with these college days.

Not only are we going to miss the guidance of these seniors but we are going to be them, for the upcoming batch. And then, even our time will come, to say goodbyes to our juniors. I must say, no matter what happens, we may crib about too many assignments and too less time, or any trivial matter, college life is the best and everyone must enjoy it to the fullest. Cheers to the seniors and wishing them even better days and a better future ahead.