Hailstones in Gujarat!

Yes you've got it right, I mean H-A-I-L stones. Even I was shocked today when all of a sudden I was hit by a tiny piece of icicle during the violent storm in the evening when I was busy enjoying one of those rare sights of Nature which one seldom gets to witness staying in Gujarat and especially in this scorching summer.

Until a few hours earlier it was so damn hot and sunny that we couldn't even open our windows to let some breeze flow in. All of us were frustrated of the excessive heat as usual and were literally drenched in sweat just staying in the room itself, under the fan with the hot air in the room not having the slightest of an occasion to complete the cycle by letting it get replaced by some comparitively less-hotter air. Before we knew it, the climate outside got quite cloudy, slightly dark and breezy beyond imagination. Those were the first indications of the possibility of an ensuing rain to grace us mere mortals with its divine presence. But who the hell would have had the guts to bet on the odds in its favour. Not me, not anyone who has had an experience of the summer what the State has to offer for three whole years. But when lightning rent the air and the first drops of rain hit against our window pane, all our inherent expectations rose sky high which until now atleast I wasn't banking upon just for the fear of being let down in the end. Needless to say, there was no stopping now. Everyone in their lives must have experienced certain moments when they did not have the need for reason or logic to support their inherent feelings, something which more than having to do with sheer common sense simply relied on faith and belief. This was just one of those moments.

With smile on our lips and hearts full of joy, my roomy - Gupt, Sri Ram, Nagarjuna and myself went out to the corridor to witness this unusual event and encourage Nature with all our possible might. The sight was eligible enough to meet all our expectations and, I should say, also go beyond them. The cool breeze was blowing with so full of vigour that had Kilari (owner of Hidalgo) been unfortunate enough to get caught in it with nowhere to take refuge of, he would have undoubtedly been swept off his feet by Mother(Err.... misleading expression actually) Nature. Anyways coming back to what I was saying, the sight was so enthralling with the flower petals blowing off in the wind, the rain falling in sheets and layers, the sweet smell of wet soil renting the air and droplets of water sprinkling onto our faces that all of us could think of only one thing in unison, a camera. Instead of enjoying the moment's glory, we in some corner of our heart were depressed of letting the moment slip out of our hands. We very desperately wanted to capture it and retain it for the rest of our lives. Hardly do you get to witness such events and re-living such moments of the past can be quite nostalgic at times. While all this was happening, even Gandhi and Atul Sethi joined us by now, Nagarjuna suddenly pointed out a small piece of ice and shrieked with excitement. I couldn't believe my eyes at first unless what happened the very next moment that encouraged me to share this experience in my Blog. Another such small icicle hit me on my feet. I picked it up and looked at it in astonishment. A hailstone falling from the sky onto the soil of Gujarat in the summer was something like me achieving a pass grade in RFE, well not quite a comparision actually, a hailstone in Gujarat might not be all that unlikely afterall.

One of the seniors beckoned Sethi to enjoy the rain in the open. Gupt went back to the room to format his PC which was burdened with softwares of all sorts he deemed handy for his numerous projects last sem. The rain got more intense gradually and so we had to exit the corridor except Sri Ram who seemed to have been so mesmerized by the sight that he subjected himself to some sort of a trance.