Of Work, Life and Opportunities

When I was nineteen, I did an internship at a car factory on the outskirts of Madras. It took two hours just to go there, and even longer to come back because of traffic in the evenings. This compounded the already incredible working hours, for the day started at 6:45 am and ended at 5:30 pm, even longer sometimes depending upon work. In other words, I had to wake up at 4:00 am, catch the bus at 4:45 am and I'd be back at around 7:45 pm. That left just enough time to have supper, rest awhile and crash into an exhausted, dreamless sleep.

That was when I started having things with caffeine in them, after an embarrassing incident of me dozing off in a little conference room while waiting for my boss. Before that, I could count on the fingers of one hand the number of times I had tea or coffee. But I digress. The situation of the regular employees was worse than me, for they generally had to stay longer, and work six to six and a half days per week. In a factory that runs almost 24 x 7 to meet worldwide demand, there is no rest for anyone. There was one curious incident when I saw one employee being met by two women at the bus stop for five minutes worth of conversation - at 4:45 am! When I enquired, discreetly and indirectly, what was going on, I was informed that those were his sister and fiance, and that his fiance had wanted to see him on a weekday, for they only got to meet on sundays usually!

Now, my work rarely required me to step outside the air-conditioned office. Even the daily walk to the cafeteria for lunch made me wince, for the blazing summer sun can suck the moisture out of you very soon. But now and then, it was necessary to go outside. Like the time when PDI (Pre-Delivery Inspection) reported a couple of recurring faults and it was the job of QC (Quality Control), where I was placed, to fix it before the cars went that far. This meant that a bunch of people in the department, me included, had to rush to the yard, inspect and mark the hundreds of cars that were parked and ready to be sent to PDI. It was hot, dusty work, and my upbringing has been such that I'm unused to physical labour of any sort. One of my hostel pals, a perpetually enthusiastic Oriya who was also doing the internship, jibed about it good-naturedly when he saw fatigue writ large on my face. When we returned to the office, I got into a conversation with one of the junior employees who I'd gotten to know a bit, and who'd been out there with us in the yard that day. I asked him how he coped with the long hours and the hard work. I'll never forget the expression on his face as he answered me.

If you know how to look, you can see the signs of past trials on a man's face. The eyes, in particular, are a give-away. I was young then, and I did not know how to look. But at that moment of vulnerability, even I could see it. The soft answer was, "It's honest work, and we need the money. Before this job, I had nothing. Now I have a chance."

All of a sudden, it was as though the proverbial Doors of Perception had been opened. In spite of my sheltered upbringing, I understood then how it felt to start with nothing and work and struggle your way up to a decent standard of living. I could taste the man's sorrow, dejection, frustration, hope, determination and salvation. I knew the meaning of hard work, its necessity and its power.

I didn't have to ask anything more about his past, or his hopes for his future. I didn't have to check if there were others in the same room with similar pasts and hopes. It didn't matter. I knew.

That was how I realized that simply by virtue of where I was born, life has given me chances and opportunities that many people would kill for. If someone didn't clear that tough examination, it need not be because he's not smart enough. If someone didn't climb that corporate ladder, it need not be because he's not hard working enough.

I am glad that I have seized most of the chances that have come my way, and made good of most of the opportunities. To not do so would be an insult to those who did not have those chances, as much as it would be an insult to my parents who gave given me those chances.

Work hard, and seize the opportunities life presents. You're lucky, you just may not know it yet.

Cheers,
Prashanth.