Lessons Of Life At A Memorable Evening

An interesting dinner with friends

**The Fun Evening — Photo by the author-Preeti Singh**

Friends at work and off work

I invited my friends Dr. Breja with his wife and Dr. Mallika Mathew for an evening at a Pan Asian restaurant.

Dr. Breja was a professor and Head of Exams and I was a Professor and Head of the Department of International Business Management. Mallika was an associate professor and we all worked in the same institute prior to covid days.

During covid, I retired from full-time work. Dr. Breja left the institute and joined another. Mallika also left the institute.

We continued to have a friendship of hearts. We did not leave each other. Off and on we called each other to find out what we were doing and we also tried to meet after covid was over.

Mallika had been one of my class coordinators and we both taught finance. She was a very straightforward and lovable person and we had a great relationship. She was very good at her work and would submit reports to me on time.

She called up to break the news that her husband had been transferred to Mumbai from Delhi. They had already been allotted a house there. She told me that she had sold her car and everything was packed in the home. She had even given her house on rent. All packed and ready and waiting for the packers to pick up the luggage the next day. Two days later they were flying to Mumbai.

She was keen that we meet up before she left Delhi. I contacted Dr. Breja and he obliged by saying that he would come with his wife. Mr. Mathew was busy because of the last two days in Delhi and had told us that he could not be present for the dinner and would like to be excused.

The evening before dinner

We were to meet at 7.45 PM for dinner. I went out for a walk at 5.30 PM. It was a little cloudy. I only walked for half an hour and suddenly the clouds started roaring and giving me a signal to go back home.

There was thunder and lightning and it began to pour. Wow! I thought we might have to cancel our dinner tonight.

Anyway, I did get ready for the evening, and when it was 7.30 PM I mustered up the courage and called up. Dr. Breja was of course driving and did not pick up the phone.

Mallika picked up the phone when I called her and said that they were 7 minutes away. They were coming together as she had sold her car since they lived in the same area.

I took out my car keys but found that it had stopped raining. I took my umbrella and walked to the venue. There was water around and it splashed a little but it was manageable.

Dinner memories

I reached the venue and They were there too. It sure was a memorable evening.

The restaurant — Photo by the author Preeti Singh

We met at Azula which has become quite a favorite with my friends. Everyone is keen to try this place at least once because of its good reputation for people and food management.

What happens when friends meet? It is a relationship of love and trust and fun together.

I met Dr. Breja’s wife for the first time. She was extremely sweet. What I liked best was the relationship between the husband and wife. They were married for 37 years. They were still like love birds.

Such relationships are an inspiration

Dr. Breja always respected women and spoke well about his wife but to see the chemistry and the sparks of love between them was amazing.

I wish all men loved their wives and their wives reciprocated equally.

Mallika was full of life and bubbly and enjoyed ordering and eating whatever was being served. We kept asking for the chef’s best dish of the day and ordered.

At dinner we enjoyed ourselves and Mallika told us how busy she had been selling her car and giving her house on rent and packing. She had completed all her work and was ready to leave. She even described the house allotted in Mumbai next to a famous Bollywood actor.

Now the bombshell at the dinner. Mallika’s husband called up. Mallika was stunned and so were we.

Her husband’s transfer had been postponed for August. It was a quick change but it had to be accepted. There must have been reasons for it but they were not yet known. Probably this happened because of a series of important meetings and conferences already scheduled.

Mallika was unruffled. She simply smiled! She had to deal with the changes in life and there was no choice. She accepted the change. Mallika was an inspiration and so was her husband to deal with such a difficult change.

Takeaways

Three lessons I learned in the evening:

1️⃣Life continues when you are working together or leaving that space. Friendship should continue and be valuable.

I am thrilled and in gratitude that my friends immediately accepted my invitation and made some changes to their program to fit in a dinner with me in the evening. Dr. Breja and his wife were traveling the next day but they still came and Mallika was leaving for Mumbai.

2️⃣What a beautiful relationship between the husband and wife. She was an indoor person and he loved to go out but they matched their expectations and managed to accept each other's choices and be happy about it.
3️⃣Mallika’s husband had to postpone their transfer and Mallika was totally understanding and unruffled about the change.

To wrap up.

Dealing with changes in life is an art. Life is uncertain always and we must be ready for such changes. We have to adapt ourselves to changes. Acceptance is important. Things do not always happen the way you want them but we must deal with our future without feeling harassed about it.

The relationship between friends, human beings, and partners is smooth and beautiful when people love and understand each other. Even in difficult situations, you can tide over it.

The memorable evening was so inspirational and created wonderful vibes of positivity and joy between friends. Thus a piece of good advice is to take life calmly in the event of sudden changes.

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