...bcz sometimes it's only memories that remain

“Why are you smiling all by yourself?” I jerked out of trance and saw my mom watching…I smiled and said - Reliving the memories…

One day during our college sessions we got a notice that Icfai Business School deputes had come down to our college with a program at their campus called The Young Achievers Program. 5 students would be selected from the college based on an Aptitude test. The Program seemed interesting and I decided to give it a try…I finally did make it to the top 5 and was selected for the program…and hence began an eventful trip to the Icfai B-School Campus which turned out to be the most memorable time of my life…
The day finally arrived and I packed my bags and left for a week long sojourn at the campus… Being away from home took some getting used to…About 100 selected Student delegates from across India turned up to participate in the program, for a six day series of seminars, workshops, and group activities, at the lush green and huge campus at Hyderabad...Mixing together with people from diverse backgrounds was a daunting task on day 1…Few awkward smiles and unsure looks later we mingled with each other and within a day forged friendships that was to last for a long time… After the grand inaugural session, started the hectic schedule of lectures, seminars and debating sessions at a stretch ..It seemed too much to take it at first but started enjoying it thereafter…Evenings brought everyone together for cultural programs, fun and games…
Having people with the same ambitions and aspirations as mine around me helped me see a spectrum of growth and self-realization that has been unlike any other that I have experienced. I felt extremely happy that I was part of a educational and social gathering that was so wonderfully good…
Finally the week long program came to an end… It was time to leave everything behind, to say our last good-byes very well knowing that we wouldn’t be meeting again…

Looking back, all the memories come back in a rush… Collective laughs in classrooms, Heated debate sessions, Hooting and cheering for friends, Hurried breakfasts, Late night chats in the hostel rooms, Loud chattering over dinner, Yummy snacks in the evenings, Crazy girl talk in the nights, battling drowsiness in post-lunch sessions, the grand desk-banging applause for our esteemed lecturers after each wonderful session, idle walks in the cool breeze at night, singing aloud in bathrooms, reminiscing the day’s events in the dark until sleep took over, loads of poses for pictures…lots of memories…Sometimes the memories flood my mind and I stop everything and just smile….

Being in my final year of college life, it pains to think of the day when I have to leave my friends of 4 years… Special times, special care and special friends... The moments pass so quickly, but the memories will remain...These are the memories that make remembering worthwhile because those are the ones, however spontaneous, that make you really smile at the way things used to be…