I have read somewhere that a book finds its readers through some cosmic force. Recently it came true when I bumped into this play which was written in the year 1948. But what amazed me that even today it is a relevant story.
It’s a story or rather a play about two characters waiting for this unknown person GODOT who is not god by the way. Neither is he anyone remotely related to any super power. The entire screenplay revolves around this waiting although a couple of characters join them but they just come and go.
Perhaps the beauty of a story is that when a reader is forced to think and derive one’s own message. To put it in a better way one is able to customize it as per the taste and preference. I even read some analysis and was surprised to see that all those unanswered questions that popped in my mind where answered by some critics of yester years. Some related it to cold war, some thought it was GOD who is godot. Don’t know what exactly is true but as per the author Godot is not God because had it been the case he would have said that. I guess god only knows.
This is the second time when I felt that there has to be something more to this. Last time when I felt like this was when I read Love Story by Eric Seagal and this book made me cry for days. Even today I cry when I recall Jenny.
Coming back to this play, my first impression of this play was the word “wait” and somehow I felt even in my case everything revolves around this incessant waiting. I have no clues about others but I feel that I wait for almost everything in my life. When I was in school I waited for classes to end so I could go home and get rid of teachers who always did one thing that is teaching and play was something for which you had to be eligible for. Waited for results, if results wasn’t as expected waited for next term and then the next.
Even today things have not change, we seem to wait for everything, be it love, marriage, job, economy to go up, election and if nothing else we await changing of time. But when someone will ask me what was it I did just before yesterday I will take time in replying and would not have a spontaneous answer. Some of us even wait for serials.
But then when we sit down and feel what is passing by is time. This flies faster than the speed of light. It seems just yesterday when I was in college, where I used to bunk class, relied on friends for Proxy and preferred to stay in hostel where I either read or slept if nothing else was there. And I vividly remember that was the time when I was actually waiting to be out of college and breathe some air of freedom. Without realizing that this hostel life will never come again.
All this makes me wonder what time is good time? Or is there anything called good times? Is there? Or is it just an illusion. What is the purpose of this waiting business? What happens if what we are waiting for doesn’t turn up exactly the way we expect? Actually I know the answer of later question we do nothing but crib for some time and shift our focus conveniently to the next thing which is on the waiting list.
A list that is endless, a list which is edited/formatted from time to time, yet, there isn’t a moment when all is synchronized and we get what we waited for. To top it all we try and amuse ourselves with various activities like listening to music, reading or watching a movie to pass time.
Time as they say just like tide wait for no one. It will never wait for you so that you could steal a nano second from it. It has never happened and I guess until something dramatic happens time will never ever wait for us and I honestly don’t see a remotest possibility of this. Because time is incredibly selfless entity, zero association with any living things and it has no life and death cycle. More than anything else it has no work, no responsibilities and absolutely no addiction. If time stops I guess that’s the time when you need to either change the battery or repair the watch or simply buy a new one.
Does it ever stop? Don’t know much about this as I have no clue about the Greenwich Mean Time whether it stops twice a year or not. And even it does stop I know for sure that it won’t change anything related to time. You know what becomes worst is that we seldom feel the joy of good time but the pain and sadness of a bad moment or a bad statement said by anyone lingers through mind. All the space that should be dedicated in thinking about the self and do things to improve the situation goes in waiting for the TIME when we will take the revenge.
Never ignore little thing in life. That was a key message from the play simply because it is these little things that are most important and it is these little things that makes a life worth living and FUN. One thing that I have learnt from this is to just keep walking and don’t lay too much hope on future as it is uncertain and past because it can’t be done away with.
Live in Present as it is actually a gift from god and that too without cribbing. IT is of course easier said than done. But I will definitely try for sure.
And yes will try not to wait for this GODOT!
By,
Tulika Jyoti Vardhan
