What happens when you catch up with people after a decade? A decade is a fairly long time for a tectonic shift in people’s personalities. But to see that not much has changed is heart warming. Stories that are exchanged are filled with nostalgia and new insights. There is a tinge of sadness about the times that have been and the times that could be. It is also a good reflection of the times gone by. Where you began and of course, on how far you have come.
Whether you walked the path in the same direction that you had set out on? Or did you change course and landed up where you are now. It is also a matter of great curiosity to figure where one would go in the next decade. Life is nothing but a collection of many memories. Funny ones, bitter ones, happy ones. But all a bagful of memories that you keep carrying around with you.
But some memories linger on and stay fresh. No matter what you do, you always remember those in technicolour details. Such vividness that it makes you feel surprised yourself. Places, dresses, smiles, scents, sounds, words – all keep rushing back. Is it your mind enhancing the image? Like a program that restores old footage or is your mind playing tricks with you? Julian Barnes deals with this almost poetically in his novel – The Sense of an Ending. Memory is funny, you tend to remember as you wish and you tend to forget also as you please. It is a cleverly written tragic novel. You must pick it up, you will likely be done with it on a short train ride or a flight to Bengaluru.
