The
lockdown has been lifted! Aha!!
And
the young cyclists are back in action @ the SP tracks.
And
this time I notice a sizable number of elders also joining this bandwagon (or
cycle-wagon??)
Twice
I got narrowly missed by a passing cyclist as I walked around the blocks. Both times
the cyclists were very slow. So not much harm would have been done even if there
was an impact.
And
please note, I take Shelcal-500 (calcium tablets) daily and that guarantees me that
no bone in my body will get broken – not even a hairline fracture, I bet!!
A
few months back I predicted that in Sobha Palladian, one cyclist will bang into
one pedestrian and break one bone.
And
that had come true.
A
couple of weeks back, a young speeding cyclist collided with a young playing
girl giving her a fractured hand.
Very
unfortunate.
And
now I see this young one back in action on the grounds with her bulky arm in a
sling but cheerful and playing! (I think
she was back in action the very next day ??)
Kudos
Anandita !!
I
am no Nostradamus.
But
I will predict that such incidents will happen again.
However,
the combination of such participants and extent of damages may differ – no denying.
There
is nothing to be surprised or upset or outraged about such accidents. Nor does
it make sense (in my opinion) to condemn such incidents so eloquently in our Whats App group.
We
live in a community with aged folks, middle aged professionals, home makers, teenagers
and kids full of energy and infants bundled up in their strollers.
And
in such communities, elders need to take their walks, fitness folks must do
their jogging laps each day, home makers must have their brisk walks, teenagers
must get together and socialize and kids must burn off their energy with brisk
activity!!!
And
the space for such activities is never infinite.
And
even though Sobha builders have provided us with more than ample free spaces and open grounds,
people will cross each other’s path, people will overtake one another, some
will lose their balance and some will misjudge their speed and direction.
So,
many times the coordinates for such activities will overlap at some destined
time.
And
at such times Sir Isaac Newton is most unforgiving!
(Newton’s
Law = Two objects cannot occupy the same coordinates at the same time)
And
so, this results in a transfer of momentum from one party to another.
And
an accident happens!!
And
I am perfectly cool with this situation and the risk of such things happening
to me. I rationalize that there are equal chances of me getting hit by a
speeding kid cyclist as by tripping over my own untied shoe laces and falling, or tripping over a
tuft of grass or skidding over a banana peel as I walk on the pavement along CT street.
But
what I am definitely not cool is the barrage of Whats App messages that follow
after every such incident.
Why
do we have to have lengthy discussion on such issues.
Why
do we have to start blaming and identifying who is at fault.
And
why do we start suggesting Do’s and Don’t’s?
And
why do we have to take sides with the children or against them.
Why
do we have to start making more rules and restrict everybody’s movements even more.
No
rule is fool proof and no activity is 100% safe – unless you are sitting or
sleeping motionless in your room with the door safely locked!
And
unless all senior citizens shift to Retirement & old-age homes where there
are no kids or any potentially colliding objects.
And
all joggers go to Kanteerava stadium and jog there each day
And
all home makers go to Indiranagar park for their daily brisk walks.
And
all kids go to footfall grounds/ skating rings /cricket pitches/ cycling
tracks/ basketball courts/etc/etc to burn off their energy.
And
the path around our block is reserved only for infants riding their prams and tiny
toddlers with squeaky shoes!!
And
I will guarantee you that none of these groups will be happy even in such ideal
situations.
So,
some bit of chaos is necessary and it is exciting as well .
We
all must live together.
And
there will be incidents and some challenges.
Some
hits and some near misses and some oops as well.
And
those moments when we say, “thank God, it’s not me “
And
‘solpa adjust maadi’ as well.
And
no denying,
Kids
must cycle cautiously, especially while negotiating corners & bends
Senior
citizens must be careful as well, when going around corners.
And
a load of more moral preaching’s and motherhood statements…
But
all said and done, the bottom line:-
All
of us must be cautious & work harder to avoid another accident.
Until
the next one happens.
How
ironical!
Krish..
No comments:
Post a Comment