Higginbothams and the corner bench at the Station (9)

Note : Railway Diaries follows the Number on the Post Title

Higginbothams – name of the book stall at the stations on South Central Railway.

When I had to wait for the train to arrive at Hubli or Londa or Belgaum, I would walk to Higginbothams and pick up a book that would keep me engaged for a couple of days.

It would be so much fun to sit on the engine at a crossing or on an empty platform bench, hold that treasure in your hand and forget the world until you hear the whistle blow or the station speaker call out the name of the train which is arriving or departing.

On some evenings when I knew that was rest was guaranteed I would walk with a book in my hand to the station and spend the evening reading and observing life that always seemed so slow when compared to that of mine.

It’s on the railway platforms that life shows you so many colors, so many moods, so many emotions and so many lessons which I always wished were taught to me in my school. One was on a journey for his honeymoon and the other was going for a funeral. One was leaving his home in search of opportunities and the other was running away from responsibilities. One had come to bid good bye to a beloved and the other had come to welcome his love. One carried the load that his strength would permit and the other swung his hands free. One would laugh throughout the journey and the other would sit on the footboard gazing at the silent sky. One would walk like he owns the world and the other would walk like he doesn’t care who owns the world.

I read a great deal about Bhagat Singh, Chandrashekar Azaad, Subhas Chandra Bose, Chatrapati Sivaji, Swami Vivekananda and Adolf Hitler. Every time I read them they gave a new insight and some times intoxicated my brain so hard that I fell asleep on the bench itself.

Every time I fell, I only learnt to stand up more firmly and determined that I will succeed in the exams that life can throw at me. It was then I set this constant reminder “know what’s more than enough for you before you can ask for more”.