Hope keeps us driving forward in life

I'm sitting in the morning train to officeand I heard someone crying, screaming, and howling in the next compartment. All te passengers were looking at the direction of the commotion. There was a crowd that'd gathered around whoever was crying. Intrigued, I too rushed there. I see a girl, of about teenage, on the phone, crying her lungs out to someone. On asking around I found out that she'd just lost her father thirty minutes ago, and she'd just received the news on phone. I immediately ran and sat next to her. She cried and cried and cried. "Papa mar gaye." I probably looked like her father's age, so she rested her head in my chest and continued crying hysterically and I went on comforting her" ro mat beti , ro mat"

Slowly the crowd dispersed in about 5 minutes and then there were two aunties, me, a little girl, and one guy. As I sat there, I heard them speak utter nonsense. One aunty said that her family was extremely irresponsible for telling her the news while she was on the train. Another said that she should eat first. The guy said that he'd lost his mother a few years ago and how life goes on. Then the aunties chipped in to say how they'd lost their father and mother too when they were very young. They asked her to stop crying, they asked her to eat, and when she wouldn't, they almost forced her to.

I sat there and I looked at her. All of this was irritating her and making her cry more. I asked the aunties to stop talking. The girl immediately joined me to ask them to shut up. They did. I told her to not eat if she didn't want to. The aunties protested, but I stopped them, and told them to let her be. They did. In fifteen minutes, they left. I sat with her in silence, all alone. For the next ten minutes, we didn't say a word. Then I introduced myself. I started by telling her that if she didn't want to do something, she had every right not to. None of us knew what she was going through.

I also told her that I was going to sit with her for as long as she needed me, and if she wanted to cry I'll hold her hand for as long as she wanted. She opened up while I listened. I didn't interrupt her, but to ask more questions. She spoke for an hour. By then, she was talking about how much her father loved her, her family, and the little things her father did for her. In another 30 minutes, as I sat beside her, she gathered up the courage to call her mother. In another hour, she ate a Hide and Seek I offered her, and in half an hour she finished her food. All the while, she spoke, and I listened. In another hour, she smiled at a joke I cracked. Then I dropped her home in an auto and she thanked me profusely for all my support and help.

By the time I left, and this girl sat beside her, she was fine, she'd smiled a couple of times, and I knew about her entire life. As I left, she thanked me a hundred million times. She hadn't healed, but she would make it through somehow to reach home. Q - How do I stay positive during tough times? Surround yourself with the right people. People who know that at times people don't need advice, they just need someone to listen to them. People who build you up, instead of using you as an excuse to talk about themselves. People who understand that they'll never understand what you're going through. People who'll stand by you as you learn to walk again.

Moving on is easier when moving on is the only option you have. Boyfriend leaves you. You beg him to stay. You try all that you can. He still does what he has to. What do you do? Just move on. Best friend doesn’t have time for you anymore, but you see him hanging out with other people. You question him. You want your old friendship back, but he doesn’t want the same. What do you do? Move on of course. Child leaves home forever. You wait for his phone calls, messages, only to be disappointed. What do you do? Move on right?

But did you move on immediately after something tragic happened? No right? You moved on after accepting the situation completely. You may find answers to some. You may not find answers to the rest. But you still move on after a certain period. Why? Because, if you don’t move on, you won’t be able to live peacefully. Remember, life waits for none. It goes on. That is why, it is important to move on in life. You start focusing on the things and people who still value you. You work on improving yourself. You start working out, leading a healthier lifestyle. You start reading, writing, traveling, doing all sorts of things that make you happy. And you only see growth and positivity there on. And that is the time you realise why moving on was the best decision you ever made. Cheers!