Arun Annamalai

I have never dreamt that this will happen. I hate to realize that DEATH is part of this human life. I hate to hear about it. Nothing in this world convinces me that death should be there. Atleast I am not convinced about death at the early ages. I have been a witness of quiet a number of these pre-aged death. I get more perplexed and disturbed everytime it happens. I pray to almighty that this should not happen one more time (or atleast should not happen for people whom I know)... But, it happens... I do not question about the almighty because I am brought up like that.

Arun was a good friend of mine. In the last one year, I spent most of my time with this gang (Bala, Radhika, Arun and Myself). We are peers and we worked very closely to each other. Knowing Arun was great because of his distinct characteristics. He is loveable, quiet, non-aggressive, dedicated and careless (as it applies to the situation on hand), knowledgable, forgiving, easy-going and a lot more that we can share. In all, I loved him for what he is - simplicity.

Being such an experienced person, he never had trouble considering me (or for that matter anyone with lesser experience) as his peer. He used to complete it work and move on. He was not at all egoistic and so never had any problem with anyone in the team. He had some responsibilities (like taking defaulters list, etc) where he had to tell our manager that these are the list of people who had not done their regular work. He never like it and as far as I know, when my name was there in the list on couple of occasions, he called me and asks me to do it. He made sure that not many got this trap and hence we started doing it just for him. For something that was mandatory and could have been enforced with an authority, he just made sure that it was done, by being polite and affectionate. There are lots and lots to say about his professional life. He was very much valued for whatever he was.

As a friend, I liked him a lot. I always approached him to get suggestions. It could be for getting a car or car accessories or for buying a lock for my home or for the bed room set or whatever... I has accompanied me to many places like Car Jewel shop, Nitraa, Lock shop, etc... I always seeked his help in almost all my purchase-related decision making processes. Not because he knew a lot (which ofcourse he knew) but because he was readily available for providing his valuable suggesttions. I am not sure if Arun knew this fact or not. But, now its too late to let him know about it. :(

I can say Arun was one of my "friend, philosopher, guide" type of a person. I still remember the day when I first took my new car out for a long drive (to Tambharam) and wanted Arun to accompany me. It gave me confidence. He did not disturb me but made sure that I was not tensed. He cautiously maintained such a balance in his conversation with me. I again failed to thank and appreciate him for giving me that comfort.

There are so many situations and instances to talk about Arun. But the one thing that our gang will immediately remember about Arun is our coffee breaks. In the past 1 year of so, after we met Arun, we hardly paid for the coffee that we had during our breaks. We had to pay only when Arun was on leave. He walks all the way with us till the coffee shop with the same pace as we are, and all of a sudden takes a quick walk when we come closer to the coffee shop. He will pull-out money from his wallet and pays for our coffee. He never entertains us pay for the coffee. The one of two occassion we start fighting, we will endup hurting his feelings and we could see a wholely disappointed Arun. He feels as if the sky has fallen down... Initially we tried defending and tried to pay once or twice, but later we stopped fighting. Much worse, we even stopped going nearer to the shop. He will buy us coffee, add the required sugar and serve it wherever we are. I am sure it is going to be a hard time for us during our coffee breaks. We will surely miss this person...

There are lots that I can say about him... But, in a crisp, I loved this person a lot and now he is not with us.

Miss you a lot Arun.