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04:59 PM
Bikram Vohra
JournalismPakistan.com
May 30, 2013
Yesterday I wrote an adieu to a good man. But when he was chief of Air India for the Gulf and I was running a newspaper we would laugh about all the people who used to be ‘nice’ to us. This is the lighter side and it deserves mention. We were kind of feted and neither took it too seriously since both of us were not party peeps and we didn’t want to be the center of attraction.
Then we both left our jobs or were eased out, same difference and the invitations stopped. The adulation evaporated to an extent. We were not the flavor of the month. From party central to the bench.
And we laughed louder. I remember a few occasions we had together riddled with mirth about specific folks who made us so important and now from the A list we were demoted to C minus or even D like you don’t count anymore so why waste time on you.
He made me laugh with the recount of folks wanting upgrades and special handling and can you get us a booking on such and such flight. And now they were not even calling him. I had similar anecdotes.
And now that I look back over the years I wonder if the social mafia is actually that callow. I think not. There is little argument that the chair gets invited with you but that is human nature, we need to be touching the stars. But when the chips are down incredible people step up. The unknowns. Folks who have lost touch with you and then they are there for you, no questions asked. Not so socially vital people who arrive at your door because somewhere in the past you did them a favor, which you do not even remember.
I have seen this so often. Even with the high and mighty. They make that move. The quiet loan, the helping hand, the ‘being there’ for an old chum who is going through a rough patch and I feel truly that people are not bad. Yes, we have our weaknesses but we don’t need to flagellate ourselves and see us all as a lump of opportunists who are constantly social climbing.
Correct me if I am wrong but haven’t you had the experience of discovering goodness that lights up your hour of darkness. I know it is fashionable to keep indicting ourselves but the evidence of intrinsic goodness survives our silly superficial ‘party’ hat conduct.
We can be mean, fling cheap shots, hurt, even be hostile and hold grudges like ships huddled in a harbor but we generally step up like we were two people in one, the good and the superficial.
That is also human nature.
And I’d like to believe I am right, in the final analysis, the good triumphs.
(The writer is a Senior Editorial Advisor of Khaleej Times and the paper’s former Editor. He has also been the Editor of Gulf News, Gulf Today, Emirates Today and Bahrain Tribune)
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