‘Pen Pal’ was a very interesting concept during my school days as there was no internet, no mobiles etc., at that period of time. I remember the advertisements for making pen friends or pen pals used to get published in different magazines and news papers. Many times I had a desire of writing to somebody especially a girl and make friendship. But my dream never took the shape of reality.
I had published an article few months ago on my webzine Candles Online, ‘Living above negative situations,’ where I had mentioned about my childhood and teenage days. There was a loneliness living inside me during those days. There was a hollow within me. I was deprived of a friendship though I managed all those situations by God’s grace but the deprivation for a friend didn’t go at all. So what I used to do? I used to dream of a friend who should be a girl whose life should be full of sorrows which means we should be identifying with each other well. We should share all our sorrows and heartaches with each other on that life-less paper. I was dreaming how I will wait for the letter to come to my house and I will open and read desperately. But regrettably I was brought up in a very conservative family where my elders were not all open to these things. These kinds of stuff were not so cool for them at all. I had to suppress the desire of having a pen pal.
Later in the life when I started taking my own decisions I made a great pal whom I used to call ‘Sassy.’ She was from Philippines and was very beautiful. She was married, who loved her husband and son a lot. But she was sad always as her husband was jobless. I used to encourage her every time when we contact each other. She was a very nice friend of mine. Even she called me once on the phone. Remember, ISD calls were very expensive then. But she did call me. That was a great feeling. But unfortunately she was not my ‘pen pal’ but a ‘chat pal.’ So my ‘pen pal’ dream of my childhood became a reality in the form of a ‘chat pal’ when I started working and was staying alone. I had many online friends during my bachelorhood. But she was the best among all.
Life changed. I grew in life and I know, once I joined different writers community, I got pals after pals. I never got a pen pal though but had many pals online. Some were forgotten and some are very precious to my heart who are still part of my life. Some say I have inspired them and some have really inspired me a lot. Pals are pals.
But even today I think, “Wish I had a Pen Pal!”
(Originally Posted HERE)
Ohk ! So today I had this weird idea that if I need to go on a camping trip deep into the jungles of Amazon and have been told to pack light and carry only the needed stuff what all will I take along. Now I want to lie to you all; this post is inspired by countless episodes of Man vs. Wild, and Bear Grylls has taught me so much. Call it being pompous, but I believe I can survive the wilderness. The marshes and mangroves and thick forest with bears and snakes and insects crawling all over the place(though I can’t eat all the stuff he does).
Third will be a Water Canteen. Water is the Elixir of life they say and most important element to survive. In the jungles, water can be found in rivers and ponds, but they are stationary while we need to keep moving. So a Canteen is must to carry water along with you and save you from dehydration. It’s said we can live without food but not without water. Fire and Water can make life much easier even in adverse situations. And if the water is stagnant or impure, just filter it with a sieve made from the corner of your shirt and boil it.
Then I would like to have a watch on me that has long lasting battery life and can serve as an alarm, stopwatch, and compass too. This is needed to keep track of your direction so you can avoid moving in circles and you can always oversleep when tired so this alarm can wake you up after some rest to be back on your feet. Now the thing I will name is very evident; it’s a Camera. I know that our high-end phones have everything, but they work on battery, so it is always good to use more fundamental things when moving in a primitive environment. Another vital thing to pack are some energy bars, a couple of Snickets and Mars bar for scenarios when you can’t forage for food easily or have no energy to move on.
Keep one plastic sheet with you that can serve as a Mat, a Raincoat, A small tent or even a Hammock. Fill your waist pouch with anti-itch cream, a toothpaste and toothbrush, a sunblock, a few sachets of salt, pepper and chilli flakes, some pen and paper and a power bank. A bottle of some kinda inflammable liquid won’t be bad if you can manage to find space in your waterproof backpack.( yeah, you are thinking right but lost those Lights, we don’t want you to set the jungle on fire).
Quill & Parchment 