It’s like a pendulum
Ravi, a dreamer from Kolkata, India, had always believed in the power of rhythm – whether it was the beats of music, the hum of daily life, or the sway of emotions. When he moved to the Netherlands a few years ago, he saw his life as an adventure, an experiment of blending the familiar with the unknown.
But life, Ravi often thought, was no straight line. “It’s like a pendulum,” he would explain to his close friends during their late-night calls. And as he spoke, they’d hear his voice laced with both reflection and optimism.
Ravi had a friend back in India, Vikram, someone he used to talk to almost every day when they were younger. Their friendship had been built on shared dreams and business ventures, long chats about ideas that could change the world. But as time passed, they took separate paths. The conversations, though rare now, remained heartfelt.
Last night, as Ravi lay on his couch in his cozy Dutch apartment, sipping chai under the faint glow of the moonlight, his phone buzzed. Vikram’s name flashed on the screen. A rare call, but one Ravi had been hoping for.
“Bhai, how’s life?” Vikram asked after a warm exchange of greetings.
Ravi paused for a moment, letting the question sink in. “Life? Well, let me tell you, my friend – it’s like a sinusoidal wave. Some days, I’m at the peak. Everything’s vibrant, full of energy. You feel the thrill, the success, the joy of creation. But then… it swings back to zero, to neutral, like nothing’s moving forward. And sometimes,” Ravi’s voice softened, “it dips to minus one. Those are the tough days. The days when you wonder if you made the right choices, leaving home, chasing dreams, being away from the familiar.”
Vikram listened quietly. He knew Ravi had a way with words, and this was no different. “But you know what’s fascinating?” Ravi continued. “The wave always comes back to zero. It’s never stuck at minus one. And that… gives me hope.”
The two friends spoke for hours that night. Ravi shared his stories of living in the Netherlands – mixing techno beats with Bollywood classics, infusing Indian flute melodies into his DJ sets, and finding joy in creative events like Night Beats. He spoke about how he missed the chaos of Kolkata but found peace in the orderly streets of Almere.
And Vikram shared his life in India – the struggles, the victories, the mundane. They laughed, reminisced, and for a while, it felt like the old days.
As the call ended, Ravi felt a sense of calm. He realized that friendships, like life, were also pendulums. They might swing away for a while, but they always came back.
Life wasn’t perfect, but it was his. A rhythm of peaks and troughs, chaos and calm. Ravi smiled, setting his phone aside, ready for another day of the dance between one, zero, and minus one.
