A day lit up with Diwali

    The festival of lights has passed us by and yet the festivity and the fervor does not seem to have dampened. Diwali, the festival of lights that had turned into a menace with crackling of crackers but the festival this year was a welcome change with greater awareness of environmental deterioration. Umpteen diyas lined up the streets and the porches of houses in many a lane and the smoke gave way to a light in its true form; a light of consciousness about our responsibility towards the society and posterity.

    Hoardings screamed for attention as shopkeepers shelled out everything possible at reduced rates.  Every store whether it was a white goods showroom or one that sold jewelry, had astounding discount offers and swarms of shopaholics flocked in the shopping streets. Handmade cards and recyclable material was stacked in markets and attracted a greater number of conscientious customers in comparison to the previous year.

   Me and my friends celebrated the festival with pomp amidst cheer and exuberance but with the people whom we love and rather the people who love us unconditionally; our family. No other occasion could have been an opportunity to start afresh and move a step further from the darkness of ignorance and remorse towards a brighter path of knowledge and gratefulness. The sweetness of the delicacies still lingers on and yet we await another Diwali; a chance to celebrate the sanctity of our relationships and to be grateful to God as we while away the night with something sweet for the sweet tooth, a hearty laugh with loved ones, a contented heart and a full stomach. By the end of the day, it is all that matters.