Let's Roll into 2024 with a Banger💥

I still can't believe it.

We are now entirely a month into the new year, which is also a leap year! It's just because our earth takes 365.2422 days to go around the sun once. These sneaky little lurky decimal points cause us to have an extra day every four or so years!

Well, as you see it, it's 365.2422 and not 365.25, so that means another rule!

The rule says a year divisible by 100 is not a leap year unless it is also divisible by 400, and so that is how we account for those pesky decimal points 😉

If you were to ask me what I did in 2023, then the only answer I'd say is "Grind."

Yeah, in 2023, I grinded to get good grades and develop solid extracurriculars! I'd have to say that in my Grades 11 and 12, I didn't take a break, and it was just about doing what was needed for the hour.

What I found out was that 2023 is going to be a foggy year in my memory and that as I would grow older, the more I recall, the more I'll forget, just as Station Eleven said: "What I mean to say is, the more you remember, the more you've lost"

So, I've made it a goal not to let 2024 be a year that goes as a foggy year! I've made it clear that in 2024, I'll start doing things I love and spending time with the people I love. Whether starting to ride my waveboard again or spending time with family, I've promised myself to actively shell out time for the things I once loved.

btw this is what a waveboard looks like!

Apart from that, one thing that I'd like to do more in 2024 is to watch at least one movie a month because when I was reflecting on what I did in 2023, I realized that I only saw maybe 5 movies in the entire year! that might seem okay, but for me, that's a little on the lower side.

Why I'm saying I want to see movies is that I feel movies, especially the ones that are iconic and famous for their storylines and directions I don't want to miss them or be that guy who hasn't seen RRR (I still haven't seen it 😭)

It's because I've realized that as I grow older it's all going to get even more busier than it is today and it's this realization that has prompted me to watch at least one movie a month and so following this new habit of mine, I decided to see "12th Fail" as the movie for January!

I have to say it openly and without shame, I cried while watching this and I'm not even exgerating.

For all those who don't know the storyline, It's about a boy who comes from a very backward background and then fails in his senior year final exams, thus causing him to take a drop year to do it again. It's a whole story in and of itself on how he failed and passed his 12th-grade boards, and that's where the movie derives its name from. The story doesn't end here; it just begins here. 

Later, we see this boy (also on the cover) go to Delhi, the capital of India, to study for the UPSC (Union Public Service Commission) exam, which is considered to be India's toughest exam to become a civil servant. It documents all the struggles he faced when he came, be it coming to Delhi without even a single penny to his name to then working part-time cleaning toilets and grinding grains at the mills while studying part-time to crack India's toughest exam. It's this struggle and journey that made me realize what I have, which most people in India don't have, and that is privilege.

It's something that I've realized: I'm so blessed compared to what the people in my country generally go through. I'm so grateful for all the amazing people I get to meet daily, and I'm grateful to god for all the opportunities that have come my way, all due to the hard work and sacrifice of my parents and grandparents. 

The thing that made me burst into tears at the end was the message that the movie entails. If I were to describe the movie in a single line, then it would be "Cheating Chor ni Hogi," which literally means to "Stop Cheating." I feel that this is such a deep message that applies to everybody, whether a kid or an old adult; it's about always doing what is right and not "cheating" in life, for you are cheating yourself.

At School, when I see my friends on tests, I always tell myself that they might get a bit more marks now, but what they're doing is fundamentally wrong and that they are not only cheating on a test but are cheating on their own selves by feeding a lie to their minds. I don't want to sound like an ethics professor or a saint who has done everything honestly in life, but it's with honesty that I tell you this.

The movie was about honesty, and that is what allowed the boy to become an IPS (Indian Police Service) Officer, which is considered an extremely prestigious post in India. What really tore me was the discussion between all the examiners at the end of his final interview, which would decide the outcome of his candidacy.

What really swept me away was his honesty, which made me cry. Before even he was about to end the chambers for the interview, the person who was with him and brought him to the chambers asked him to lie about what really happened in his 12th year and what was the reason why he failed and then later passed with 3rd division.

He didn't hesitate to talk about how he failed and then passed on his own merit whilst his peers passed with excellent grades and flying colors with 1st Division as he was truthful and pure. In my life, I also look up to my Chemistry teacher and see a glimpse of this boy in my chemistry teacher. I take inspiration from him, for he is someone who is not only down to earth but like an open book, not only in his subject but also in life in general. He really is a man of ethics, and sometimes I even think that he should become an ethics teacher instead of a chemistry teacher and teach about his life as an ethics course.

What I've realized after reflecting more and more is that these genuine people are the ones who really make it out in life, and even if they don't their life motto is what allows them to live a life like nobody, a life of truth, a life where you don't have to justify bogus reasons to yourself, a life worth living.

I, too, want to become like this, and from this year onwards, I've promised myself to become more genuine and more real to myself and others in everything I do, for we only live once in a life that is ours. This reminds me of a quote by Steve Jobs: to live each day as if it were your last. This absolute downright honesty can allow one to look eye to eye into one's self when he looks at the mirror, for he is pure.