Farewell / Reunion

It has been not too many days since I wrote a blog about Harman Veerji when he was leaving for Gurgaon and now it is Parmeet veer heading for the same place. Though I wanted to increase the frequency of writing blogs but not in this way. In the past few weeks there has been a good increase in terms of headcount in the group but with so many members moving out of the city I am now feeling bad. The relay race which started with Sumit veer moving to US, followed by Gujinder Singh moving to Australia, and then Harmandeep shifting to Gurgaon now it is Parmeet Singh which will be followed by Hardeep Singh who will soon be flying for US.

Before Parmeet veer starts feeling that this blog was not meant for him I better start jotting about him. Had I not stayed in this house for last three months I would have probably thought that he knows to speak only one sentence “Veerji aap chai peeoge?” Like me he loves tea, not sure if he loves making it as well but my selfish part always assumed so, and has helped me enjoy his magic many times. Though being a good cook, he could not put his skills to work in Khalsa House’s kitchen. “Jithe Ramindar veer di kardchhi chaldi hove, othe hor koi taddke kiddan la sakda hai!” :D This is a complete topic in itself and I would love to write about it…Till then it would be enough to say that I really admire and love how Ramindar veer does it…and would like to see him continue doing what he has been doing till now.

After kids, I think Parmeet veer (the one in black turban) is the cutest member of Soch. He is…no, he seemed to be a complete introvert when he joined here. There is a complete story about what he felt when he came to Khalsa House for the first time. Since he himself is into writing blogs I would rather leave that to him to write a complete blog about his life’s break at Khalsa House Station.

Had Meerut been an overnight journey I am pretty sure that we would have never seen this guy here on weekends. And it is actually difficult to stay away from your sweet kid (Sidak in his case) and your family. That very well explains his being on calls almost all the time after dinner till we sleep. Am writing this blog on Saturday while he is busy searching a house in Gurgaon on Sulekha.com sitting in the next room. There are plenty of things that are going on in his mind right now…He is just too happy and too excited for his transfer. But am also sure there would be a glitch of going away from here. Not sure how Parmeet or rest of the guys feel here, but I personally feel it would be great for anybody to let their kids grow in the company of these chachus. There are a lot of things which can be seen here practically, which you can find printed in chapters of Divinity school books.

Coming back to Parmeet Singh and his journey here, I think Parmeet veer had that luck to get into the Khalsa House. He had met Kanwal veer casually on road as a stranger and it was just after a conversation that Kanwal veer welcomed him here to stay for whatever months he was supposed to stay in Hyderabad. It is just that those few months have now come to an end and it is the happy time for a family reunion.

In future I would like to see another reunion. I would like Sidak to meet all of these Chachus and know what kind of love and affection did Parmeet veer enjoy while he was here in Hyderabad. With this I recall a small gesture which I would like to pen down in my diary.

Though completely out of superstitions, you would find Khalsa House members believing in Nazar Lagna in one way. The day Ramindar veer looks ‘too’ good (though he looks good daily) Parmeet veer does his act of “kaala til lagaana” so that Ramindar veer nu nazar na lag jaye. Since we do not have Kajal here this is done with a black marker beneath the ear close to where turban ends! The first time I saw it happening live, I thought somebody is trying to leave without eating breakfast and he is being persuaded to have it by Ramindar veer, who has lot of such responsibilities in the morning. But then I got to know…this was a mark of affection which was being put by an elder brother. I wonder from now on, who will tag Ramindar veer with a ‘til’, the day he looks extra smart. I was given a feedback by someone that my blogs have an emotional touch, but I doubt if we have a person here who is not emotional. And I’ve seen Parmeet Singh getting emotional for with a thought of leaving this place, especially because of the bond he shares with Ramindar Veerji and the good time he had while Sumit veer was here.

Parmeet veer, we would like to meet Sidak. Please bring him along next time you come to meet all of us. And I have another request to make... We would like to see Sidak as a fluent speaker and a comfortable good reader in Punjabi. Please try your level best that you impart this education to him while you nurture him. You already have our Master ji in Gurgaon who got a release from here just a week before you.

I am still confused to term this as a Farewell or a reunion. It is a Farewell...Farewell to the bachelor life which he had to live while his kid and wife were away in a different city, farewell to all those lonely times which Bhabhi ji and Sidak had to spend while he was being loyal to his job here, and also farewell to the sweet times which he got to spend here in Hyderabad. But the best is the reunion happening in his family or rather union of two families, Parmeet veer's with the Soch Parivaar. Yes, we have expanded again...

Rendezvous with Harmandeep Singh

The things I could recall about Harman veerji after meeting him for the first time were:
· He had done a brilliant Ardas involving himself and others completely
· He had great knowledge in bani
· Was fond of eating! ;)

After being in touch with him for the past few months the headlines still remain the same, though news have been shuttling between main and extra pages. Though we all knew that he was looking for a change on north side but when we heard about it we were happy and sad at the same time. We would be losing a wise member for the group discussions. The first statement that everybody said was “Hun Ardas kaun karega?” Soch has it…a specialized member for each thing and it is Harman veer for the Ardas. The best about him in this aspect was to include the occasion be it happy or sad, into the last section of the Ardas. There was never a need to tell him about somebody being unwell or a happy occasion being celebrated. Suneya hai kise kise di ardas zyada suni jaandi hai…I believe he is one of them…

There’s a lot of stuff that we all have learnt from him. The last few trips with him to Bidar and Hazoor Sahib have specially been very rewarding for me. He is normally very frank and open for discussions, but sometimes the ambience makes the difference which can take conversations to boundaries which have not been explored earlier. With Harbaksh veerji also being there with us for the trip to Bidar, I was feeling like I am on a trip with two Harman veers. When there are two intellectuals talking the horizon of talks get limited to the domain of the one with less knowledge. And here I was witnessing the conversation of two veers who seemed to talking about anything and everything about principles of life, Bani’s implementation in practical scenarios and how far are we from the right track we should be on. I contributed a lot to their conversation by being silent, for I did not want to limit the domain of their conversation. :)

There are two sides of him and you need to meet both to know him completely. The confident DBA in corporate attire transforms into a complete theth punjabi with saffron keski and white Punjabi casuals ;) at his home. Feels proud to be associated to his culture and the pind diyan gallan which he narrates with great interest. And there is a depth in his voice which will entangle you in his conversations and make you believe that life is still simple and cool. Basically a very good conversationalist I think he can talk at length with anyone on any topic, condition if the person is front is receptive and worth what is being discussed about. His small eyes are enough to scold you for anything he doesn’t like happening around. Though he would wait for sometime before he starts expressing his concerns, the silent stares are enough to hint you about what to do next to keep all calm. Yes I have received some and am afraid of them. ;) Daadd gilli karna is one of his favourite hobbies and we have given him patent for this phrase and for another one…something related to birth of a question! ;)

We have been pushing him like anything for starting a new group back in Gurgaon because with coming times people might be going back to north side closer to their homes. After enjoying the company of Sangat here I don’t think there can be a Happy Weekend without being in such a sangat. And with Bhajan veerji, Gagan bhainji and now Harman veerji being there as well, I hope it won’t take much time to erect a building since pillars are already in place.

We recently had a get together dinner at his place where he addressed everybody, recollecting his memories of how he came into the group and how has he changed since then and what changes could he notice in everybody in the times that have passed by. He just connected it in such a beautiful way like there was a movie playing in front of us and it seemed like we would have a emotional climax to this one but we could avoid it with a joke cracked by Ramindar veer! ;) Ramindar veer, Thanks for that…you could limit the conversation to just heavy voices. Though he said a lot about all of us, even after provoked by Randeep veer I couldn’t muster enough of words to say something for him and rest everybody as well chose to keep quiet. So here comes this blog letting all that out which could have been said that day. It was better not said for we needed some time to digest what all had already been talked about. And sometimes silence is like saying more that could have been with words.

Finally it makes me feel that though we are letting a important element of ‘Soch’ part from us but it is like opening another branch of an organization. Even a division operator actually multiplies the count of entity...one entity into two – a dividend and a divisor. I hope and pray that the new ‘dividend’ which he starts in Gurgaon continues to flourish and blossom in the light of Sikhi while the ‘remainder’ here in Hyderabad achieves new heights with new Gursikhs like him joining and guiding us to be on the correct path of life.

Wishing and praying the best for him...May he continue to be on the right track enlightening others as he has been till now....

And I finally made it to Khalsa House

May be my english vocabulary is too weak to completely understand the meaning of ‘again’ or may be I should use another word to define something that happens in loop, over and over again. Let me make it clear..I dont love changing homes but this might be my 4th house since past 8 months!! Yes, I am shifting AGAIN… I hope my new landlord doesn't read blogs or I will have to soon search for a fifth one! ;)

Believe me it is very easy to set up a home....You do that incrementally, brining it together piece by piece. You would have never known how much of junk have you gathered together until comes that stage of piling it all up and taking it to another home. I think I am no different from others having habit of keeping junk with you, giving self assurances that it would be needed one day. But when finally you throw it one day, it would surely be needed within next one month from the date of disposal! ;)

I often hear my parents and relatives saying “Amrit nu taan ghar set karan di bahut changi practice ho gayi honi hai hun taan!” I have been shifting like anything. Though I don’t love too many changes but circumstances always play some painful but sweet games with me as far as changing homes is concerned. But I think all these years I have always met better companions with each change. Now I finally made it to the best!

There was a time when I was longing to be with the Khalsa House members, almost spending my whole weekend with them and trying to be there with them after office hours and then coming back here again early morning so that I can do path with them. Although I am still not a legal resident of the Khalsa House [A reqsuest to Ramindar veerji if he ever reads this, pls make me legal! ;) ] but have been staying here since February. I couldn’t move in earlier because of the space constraints as there wasn’t more space in the almirah’s which already seem to be overloaded. But then I am able to stay because the Khalsa House members seem to have much bigger hearts than their almirahs. Or may be I am too shameless to go away because there was no space for my belongings :P

I somehow believe that you can’t just get into Khalsa House. People are very inviting, very affectionate, very apne but at the end you need to have some extra kismat to meet them and earn their company. To tell you the truth I never stayed overnight in Khalsa House earlier, always used to go back to my home at the end of the day because somehow I felt that I don’t deserve to stay with them. They all seem to be full of purity and I could see myself as full of all other stuff nothing of which seemed to present in them. If I can recall correctly I would like to call it being in disjoint sets.

But as time passed by the magnetic charisma finally pulled me over to their end and I started finding it hard to go back home. I have been staying with them since Feb end. This house seems to be more of mine now than the one where I often go to collect my belongings. In fact I have also changed my ‘wareHouse’ in the meanwhile. So I now go to Kanwal veer’s house to get my belongings.

This blog comes at a time when there is also another place getting vacant in the Khalsa House II (Jasprit veer and Harman veer’r house). Harman veer, whose Ardas made me shiver the first time I heard it, whose knowledge in bani can spell bound anyone, whose explanation of bani and slok and the way he connects one shabad to another when he sits for some viakheya makes you a motionless stone for while. He is moving to Gurgaon for greener pastures, or I should say Career pastures, for now we all acknowledge that it couldn’t be greener than here.

So though I have been staying here at Khalsa House, I would soon be getting an opportunity to move to Khalsa House II. I am happy, speechless, but I think the stay would have been much more gaining had Harman veer been there as well. May be I am not that deserving to get it right now. Rather I should try my best to get the max out of what I am actually going to get, by getting an opp to stay with Jasprit veerji; because even that is going to be much more than my ability to absorb.

So another week to go before I finally shift again to my new house. Though this time I don’t need to pack my stuff, since I did not unpack it all last time I shifted! ;) It seems I just got 'lucky by chance' to get to stay in both the Khalsa Houses for some time and I really pray I don’t have to shift from there …Again…