Kya har ek friend zaroori hota hai?

Are we now questioning the tagline of AirTel cellular service? I would not say that it is exactly that, but it’s more of a thought in retrospect after reading the line. Do we really need every kind of friend or how important is it really to have all kinds of friend in life. It all depends on how we really see a friend or the impact that their presence makes in our life. Each individual that comes into our life brings a certain amount of influence from their own lives. As they say variety is the spice of life. There are a few who can drive you up against the wall, with their non-stop pestering, chattering and questioning. There simply is no way to get them quiet, unless of course you start talking in much louder voice than the one being used by them in the situation. But more oft than not, this just fuels their enthusiasm to continue their conversation and before you know it, it’s them doing all the talking and you just end up doing what you wanted to avoid in the first place. Listening to a strong one-sided conversation! And try as you might, you simply won’t get them to shut up! So you just let them ramble on while you sit there pretending to listen while silently groaning inward! Then, there are those who rarely use the power of speech to communicate. All they require is a nod, a gesture and few words thrown in between to keep the conversation (their version of a conversation, that is) going. You are left wondering, ‘What on earth can get them into an animated conversation’? While the former clan of people can teach us how not to lose enthusiasm and to voice our opinions strongly, the latter can show us how to be good listeners. There are some who go all out recklessly and do things, living life on the edge, with the ‘Devil may care’ attitude, where as there are yet others who plan things so meticulously that you know these are people who consult a to-do list for their day to day activities. There are still some who have a sense of equanimity in their actions. They are usually the balancing factor amongst a group of friends. They keep the high fliers a little grounded, let them be a little reckless but in a measure, where when things start going out of control, they can always reel them back in. Though sometimes they might be left thinking ‘I am so going to regret this!’ when the high flyers get them into some adventurous/risky situation but mostly come out feeling exhilarated after having that adventure and feeling more alive. Probably because of this,they can then again, be the coaxers to the tedious planners, helping them take things lightly, making them a part of impromptu plans so as to enable them to unwind and not be stiff about situations or as we say these days, ‘Go with the flow’. Some appear to only keep taking risks and make endless mistakes with their decisions but that never deters them from trying new things. This never give-up attitude despite all the follies of theirs can, at times be increasingly frustrating and annoying to others, especially those who rescue them time and again, from the pits that they have managed to stumble into yet another time. They, through their ‘not-so-well thought out plan’ and the following repercussions teach us to be more careful and wary of situations, people and risk taking in life, in general. But this same set of people can be that little ray of sunshine and hope when there is nothing but gloom around and try as one might, there seems no end to the long dark night. Their undying hope of ‘a light at the end of the tunnel’ serves to help as much as cause trouble when left unbridled. But then don’t we all need some mistakes to learn and probably have a nice laugh a few years down the line. When there is such variety, fun and learning along the way (read as life), then why hold back or for that matter even question it? Each friend comes along adding his own spice to it, making the perfect broth. And this broth unlike the famous saying is never spoilt with too many cooks. In fact here, it’s always ‘The more the merrier’