Vaishnavi looked at her wristwatch: 1:30 PM. The mood in the restaurant is cheerful.

Outside, there are more scooties than bikes.

Yes … Restaurants are for girls. The lazy boys can hangout in roadside tea-stalls and carts that sell food on street.

Girls … rock !

“I will have Crispy Chicken Rolls with a coke” “OK … Ma’am … It will take time” “No problem. I can wait” Vaishnavi told the waiter with a broad-smile.

Image Credit: Pixabay.

In India, people can easily be offended or irritated with words like It Will Take Time. Wherever they go, they want thier task done immediately – No matter how many people are before you or whatever the situation there … irrespective of the place: Office, hotel, theatre, temple, hospital …

We have to travel … URGENT !

But, not to Vaishnavi. She is now sitting in the only KFC restaurant situated in the charming city of Tenali. When the waiter said there will be delay, she want to say I have all the time in the world.

The one thing she hates in the whole world is … Time.

Infact, her conflict with Time began as early as her childhood. Ever since she was 5, she always remembered being late for school. She never blamed her mother for this. She stopped yelling at Vaishnavi when she turned 13. When she turned 13 and entered a new phase of life called Teenage, her uncle waited for her downstairs on her birthday. With a gift to present, he waited and waited and left. After she returned, her angry father gave a set of keys and told her to go outside and find her gift. A new pink cycle gifted by her uncle is waiting for her. Her uncle thought the cycle will solve all her problems.

After she left school and joined college, her brother waited for her outside the college-office, when she just went for xerox and returned after 1 hour.

The lateness continued all through her graduation and post-graduation. She remembered it as if it was yesterday, the cute face of her only friend Farmeen twisted in anger and grief, when she turned at her house two hours late, while she was leaving for Haj !

She never catches the city-bus, visits hospital as the doctor leaves before her, steathily slides through a crowd in a funeral at the last minute and when she reaches for her seat in a theatre to watch a movie, the opening credits are already gone 15 minutes before.

The table she is sitting is comfortably located at the far-corner of the restaurant and through the sliding glass, she can clearly see the front of the restaurant.

She now turned 27 and if anyone asks her what she did in the last 27 years, she says it with full clarity: She had missed Time !

That’s why when her best-friend Farmeen gifted her a journal to keep her thoughts on, she wrote on the first page … Everyone in this world is f****d up by Time. So, next time you miss something, f**k Time instead !

As she started gulping down the plateful of Crispy Chicken Rolls, she pondered on why she should not be worried for missing the interview. It is scheduled for 12 PM, while she reached the premises just an hour late. The receptionist told her the interviewer had already left a good 20 minutes before.

*********************

“Now, this will be our final attempt to get you a job, idiot girl. See, how worthless you are. The girls of your age are already married. How are we going to get you married with your time problem ? Lazy girl, show me a day in your life, when you are on time. We shouldn’t have birthed you in the first place”

Her parents’ words have stung her heart like a cannon fire. She left the house slamming the door … With anger and with grief. On her scooty, she drove past the iconic Martyrs Memorial at Ranarang Chowk and reached Vykuntapuram.

She climbed the steps of the famous Venkateswara Temple. After her darshan is over, she sat under the cooler shades of trees and wondered whether God had any control over time. Whether that God is Allah, Ram or Jesus, she doesn’t care. But, whoever it is, He has control over time. Otherwise, He cannot run this vast universe.

If only she had one percent of that power …

She sat there till sunset and when she reached home, her mother told her something about her last interview.

“Daddy, talked to his friend at Axis Bank. Tomorrow, you should be ready at 8:00 AM, he will take you there” She told Vaishnavi without making eye contact. She knows why … She is a total burden to her parents. If they say 8 AM, she will be ready by 10 AM. She never gonna be punctual !

****************

One Month Later …

The Branch Head -cum- Manager looked at her with his arrogant eyes. “This is the last and final warning to you Miss Vaishnavi. Ours is a reputed organisation. We have certain standards, if not, Axis Bank wouldn’t have reached the top level. You are always late”

She wished that this man would be the last person to warn her about time.

As she descended the stairs and started her scooty in the parking-lot, a man asked her: “Excuse me Ma’am … What is the time ?”

Just f**k off, you sick c**t … She want to yell at the man. But, she silently rode away.

Gosh … What is the problem with these people ? The whole world seems to be buzzing around time, while it matters nothing to her.

****************

Vaishnavi is now totally vexed with her life. Why in the world, she had to endure all this ?

People are judging her by time. She glanced at her wrist-watch: 9:30 AM. Before 10, she had to be at her office.She can’t take it anymore. Today, she has to proove to the world that she is punctual. As the thought entered her mind, she started her two-wheeler and with full speed she raced past the busy roads of Tenali.

Vaishnavi raised the accelator and looked at the speedometer … 20 … 30 …35 … 40 ..

“Hey, watch out … ”

“Look out foolish girl … ”

“Heyyyy … Slow … Reduce your speed … ”

She zoomed past the people and words are slightly audible. The arrow in the speedometer kept mounting: … 40 … 50 … 60 … The surroundings are a blur to her …

She still raised the accelator … 65 …

At this moment something happened and the last thing she remembered is the terror striken face of a school boy, whose is trying to cross the lane …

**************

Three months later …

As she reached Itha Nagar, she got down from the scooty and reached for the gate.

“Good Morning … Babai ”

“Hey, Vaishu … ” Her uncle is the one who is very closest to her heart.

Infact, he is the one who really understood her real problem. Even her best friend Farmeen too shrugged off, when she explained to her about her friction with keeping up on time.

Her uncle is a Psychologist who works as the Cleveland Clinic at Ohio. With a couple of books and a bunch of interviews to his credit, he became a role-model for her ever since her school days. He left India when she was 13, gifting her a pink cycle on her birthday and returned three months back.

Vaishnavi handed over the nearby pot to her uncle. After filling it with soil, she planted a Croton in it.

“You know the joy of gardening Vaishu ? When you plant something, be it a small sapling, you are upholding a life” Vaishnavi likes her Uncle’s words.

Infact she devours them and stores them in her heart. As far as she knows, he is the one person in this whole universe who makes sense. Her life and her f*****g job doesn’t make any sense at all.

And, speaking of job, what happened to her job ? Three months ago she had a terrible accident and all she remembered is that terror in the eyes of that school boy. She was discharged three days ago.

“Babai, what happened to that boy?”

“Haa .. Haa … Vaishu, do you know why I love you most of all the people in our family ? You have a Heart !”

“Huh ?”

“Vaishu, you didn’t ask what happened to your job”

“Oh … Come on, you know I never cared about that freak job”

“I know Vaishu. That boy is safe. Here, take this … My latest gift for you ” Vaishnavi opened the box and took a look at her new gift.

It’s an hour glass with sand in it.

“You know Vaishu, people say that the whole world revolves around money. But, I say the whole world revolves around Time. So, if you have Time in your hand, then, the whole world revolves around you. Turn that hourglass upside down” As she turned the thing, the bottom which is filled with sand is now in reverse position and the sand began to drop from the upper-part of the device.

“When the the ancient persian invented this magnificent device, they used to say … Time and tide wait for none”

“Babai … My biggest problem in life is … Time”

“And, if that biggest problem is overcome, what do would you do ?”

Vaishnavi never thought about that. It’s like she had to live with this problem the whole of her life … Like a disabled person. She can’t fit in a job, can’t marry, can’t live an independent life, like her friend Farmeen … It’s like she’s born with a curse.

“No, Babai … I don’t think so. There’s never goin’ to be a solution for this. My life is over at 27 years only. I could never make it beyond 30. Even if I live, I am a living corpse. God threw the dice and the I’m on the flipside”

Tears streaked down her pretty face.

Her uncle hugged her and whispered in her ear: “Why don’t we give it a last try ?” Whenever her uncle used to talk to her, it’s always We and not you.

“Come here everyday at 10 starting from tomorrow. We can figure out something” He told to Vaishnavi, as the girl left his house, riding her scooty.

****************

“Vaishu … Now what you have to understand is … Everyone has only 24 hours. But, the one who has control over time is the one who knows what to do in that 24 hours. That’s all makes the difference”

She likes the phrase Control Over Time.

Is it possible … Ever ?

“Prioritise … Skip unimportant things and categorise which to do first”

****************

Vaishnavi looked at her new gift: A colourful pocket-sized memo book. The assorted pages are cool to note down things.

“Everyday, start your day with this small book. Write a To Do List. After, that task is done, strike it with an OK. This way you know how to plan your day”

******************

“Now, you know the age-old adage Time And Tide Wait For None. But, there’s a technique to freeze time and do what you cannot do in a normal busy day. Time really freezes sometimes in a very busy day, when no one notice: During long travels, during long-waits and during socializing. You have plenty of time lying around. You have to pick it and utilise it”

**************

Her uncle’s wise words are healing her wounds and her life seems to be on track again. “Only one in ten thousand is a successful person. Everyone thinks that successful people don’t waste money. What they don’t waste is not money. What they don’t waste is … Time”

************

Vaishnavi’s heart is overwhelmed with satisfaction. Her uncle is like a guru to her.

“Learn to say No. Less entertainment. Reduce your TV time, online presence, siestas, outdoor activities … ”

*************

“Multi Tasking …Doing multiple things simultaneously … Is the one evil that halts time. Driving while on a call, texting during eating to name a few. These will dampen your bright day”

************

An year had passed since her uncle left India. Before leaving, he played the perfect role of a guardian angel for her.

He trained her well in harnessing her life. All these days, she followed her uncle’s lessons word by word, applying them word by word. In due time, she passed a written test in he office and took promotion as an officer.

To everyone’s shock, she started to be punctual for everything. She is ahead of everyone. Today, he returned to India on her birthday.

“Babai … You are the reason I still continue to live”

He hugged her and motioned her to sit down.

“Vaishnavi … Not all I told you about Time is true”

“What do you mean ?”

“I lied to you Vaishu. Forgive me dear. There’s a reason that you are always late since birth. Infact, a real reason. Take a look at this”

He threw a folder on the nearby table. She opened the filed and suprised to see her name in it.

There’s an emblem on the header: Cleveland Clinic, Ohio, United States.

What a prestigious institution like Cleveland Clinic has to do with her ?

“An year and a three months back, you had a terrible accident on scooty. No one except the boy saw exactly what happened. Your head slightly hit a rock lying on the road. Everyone thought you escaped unhurt. But, I had my doubts. As a professional who works in psychology, I realised right on your 13th birthday when I gifted you that pink cycle that there’s a real problem with you managing time. But, I thought time will heal all wounds. But, it had enhanced your wounds instead. When you had accident, I rushed to India. I confirmed my doubts by conducting tests on you, while you were on coma. fMRI … Which measures brain activity by detecting changes associated with blood flow. This technique relies on the fact that cerebral blood flow and neuronal activation are coupled. And with some symptoms … I concluded that you are diagnosed with a medical condition called Chronic Lateness.

The condition is caused by the same part of the brain affected by those who suffer from Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), and means you cannot properly gauge how long things take to complete. 

In fact, many ADHD sufferers complain they struggle to keep time. Some psychologists believe that chronic lateness could be a symptom of an underlying mood disorder such as depression. A recent study of more than 200 people at San Francisco State University showed that 17 per cent were chronically late. Those unable to be punctual displayed similar patterns in behaviour including anxiety issues, and trouble with self-control. Researchers said the problem — whether it affects a person personally or professionally — is not irreversible, however. Psychologists recommend those affected to work to make deadlines non-negotiable, monitor how long it takes to perform certain tasks and always plan to be early”

“But, Babai … Why don’t you tell me immediately ?”

“I want a permanent cure for this. And, in a natural way. That’s why I trained you with all the time management. If you know that you have a problem in your brain, you may not improve in your life … Ever. So, I withheld the truth and recovered you dear”

“Thank you Babai. You are my life saver. What can I owe you ?”

“Never mind Vaishu … You have conquered time. Just, sit back and relax … Let the world revolve around you”