Car keys and I don’t go together. In fact keys and I don’t go together. I can also add that wallet, and cash and hair bands and safety pins and buttons and umbrellas and all that paraphernalia and I, don't go together. We constantly elude each other. We like to play hide and seek. We have a distant relationship. It is some conspiracy of nature, some joke of God, or some repulsive magnetic field thing. Or wait, maybe it’s simply that my mind only likes to ponder about bigger things, you know? Only meaningful stuff. Like life, and philosophy and all that? What is in a key or wallet or an ATM card or cash after all?
Alright, enough of blah. The truth is that I am absent minded. And I agree. Period. The smaller the object I have to take care of, the more absent my mind is. And that is why I travel light. I always carry the bare minimum stuff, because I know that on my way back, I will forget something! So am I disorganized? No, not at all. Am I not careful? That is not true either. Am I forgetful then? Well, I would not like to call it that way. The thing is that I try to be very organized and careful, while my mind is with me. When it is not there, it's all God’s mercy. Thankfully, God has been merciful enough on this tuchh prani. *Smile*.
Here is something that has often happened with me. I come home with some really important document or key or gadget or anything like that. And of course, my extremely careful self puts that thing in some real safe and logical reasonable place. And then after that (here comes the hitch) my mind forgets about it completely. Now, after a few days or months, the time for fruition comes when that very treasure needs to be retrieved. And the pain begins. Add to that those expectant eyes looking at you with disdain and disbelief while I have to manage with, “No I have not lost it definitely, I know it is very important and so I kept it in some real befitting place. Just give me a few more minutes”. But suddenly life becomes very mysterious (remember hide and seek?). And then as days pass and one fine evening, I am searching for some socks (or something else that is now the treasure being hunted), lo! I find my old treasure (it is accompanied by a small private moment of pride and appreciation on what a fine place I had kept it in).
Like it happened last time when I was on my India trip these very winters. I had taken my winter jacket and was flaunting it around most of the time. Winters are pretty cold in Delhi although they are nothing compared to US. Still 40's to 60's are common during Dec-Jan-Feb. Anyways, so I was wearing the jacket often; when during some unfortunate moment, I realized that a button on the front side had become loose. The when mindful very careful person that I am, (like I told you) I immediately kept it safely at some esteemed place. And then happy and carefree again, (like after discharging your duties well) I went back into indulging in the other trivia of life. Incidentally, the next few days were warmer and I did not have to wear the jacket. Then one day it became very cold again and I took out my jacket. Suddenly, I remembered that the button had come off. Obviously it had to be fixed before I put it on. Or may be not. It depended on the success of the next operation (which is? you are right, the search operation). I started to look around for the button. I looked and looked - in the jacket pockets, handbag pockets, my closet locker, this and that. But did I find it? NO.
Anyways, I managed the winter there with some other jackets, shawls, pullovers (sometimes even this jacket trying hard to hide the flaw). I knew however, that I was going to take this jacket back to US because it was really a warm one. So, with many more search operations (private ones while faking to look for something else) and no success, I reluctantly bought a whole new set of buttons and got them stitched onto the jacket. Reluctant because the older buttons were really fashionable and went very well with it and I did not find any new ones up to the mark. I eventually settled my mind for the compromise solution of the newly sewed boring yet useful buttons and decided to forget about everything.
Time flew and no sooner I was back home after a great trip. After a few hours of a little chit chat and retrospection on the trip, I began to unpack. Now guess what happened? You are right. I found that button. Where did I find it? you would ask. Well, remember I talked about searching in the handbag? So it was in the handbag and I did not check it well? again you would ask. Err … not exactly. You see, in a way it was in the handbag but in a way it was not. Kind of like Hai bhi aur nahin bhi hai (I am suddenly reminded of the scene in the Bollywood movie Chupke Chupke, where Amitabh is trying to tell Jaya how Corolla is a flower and yet it is not; something like that... that movie is my all time favorite by the way). Alright, let me unravel the mystery quick. So, it was inside that handbag, but it was inside a small purse inside the handbag (kinda small pouch where I keep most of my important stuff like, home keys, some jewelry, important receipts and all that). So, when I searched, I searched in the main big handbag, but not in the bag inside the bag. You see? Logical? (these are of course rhetorical questions, not meant to be answered).
So now, I have the old jacket with the new buttons sewed onto it and the old buttons all safely tucked in some safe place. And umm … do I know where? Err … I 'll have to check with my mind and get back to you on that.
I recently triumphed over the tyranny of a mammoth like exam. During the sullen and morbid days, my depleted mind was hopelessly confusing regular activity as fun. Those few moments I could grab to watch much of the same old stuff on television, catch a glimpse of the fall colors as I drove to school or even find time to prepare tea seemed like the promises of a free tomorrow. 
