FOR REMEMBRANCE
Col. Arun Bhagra (TA) ’67
1.
The cruel hands of fate have snatched away, prematurely one of the
brightest stars of the fraternity of IR officers and a jewel among the tribe of
SAMs.
2.
Sh. Vij will always be cherished in memory for his infinite
friendliness and understanding. He had the power of endearing himself to people
without any effort on his part, simply by being himself and warming the
atmosphere around him with his sheer magnetic presence.
3.
One vividly remembers the first encounter during the turning out of our
batch in the quadrangle on return from OC on Club Day ’69; the introduction to
Radio Kuwait while attending a diesel course from Tata; the dazzling brilliance
on the hockey field, the hilarious conversations, a memorable dinner at MGS,
Club Days ’94 & ’97 at SP Marg et al, subsequently.
4.
He groomed an entire generation of young SCAs during his tenure as
Princie of the Alma Mater. Like a later day Spartan he stood at the vanguard in
Themopylae when Sh. Jaffer Sharif tried his worst to disband the the SCRA
scheme:-
“Their shoulders held the heavens suspended,
They stood,
and earth’s foundations stay .
What God
abandoned these defended.
And saved the
sum of things for pay.”
5.
One was blessed to have been considered a friend at the formative stage
of life at JG. These words of Hilaire Belloc:-
“From quiet homes and first beginning ,
Out to the undiscovered ends,
There’s nothing worth the wear of winning,
But laughter and the love of friends.”
seemed to be the whole truth, during those halcyon
days.
6.
The tragic and untimely passing away of Smt. & Sh. Vij has left an
aching sense of bereavement. They are mourned for their talent of for living
life, worthily and for helping others to do, likewise. They made the world
immeasurably the better, by their presence.
7.
Perhaps, from the Heavens above, Sh. Vij’s soul is telling us:
“I
am free……………………..
Don’t
grieve me for I am free
I
am following the path God laid for me
I
took His hand when I heard Him call
I
turned my back and left it all.
I
could not stay another day
To
laugh, to love, to work or play
Tasks
left undone must stay that way.
If
parting has left a void
Then
fill with remembered joy
A
friendship shared, a laugh, a kiss
Ah
yes, these things I too will miss.
Be
not burdened with time of sorrow
I
wish you the sunshine of tomorrow
My
life’s has been full, I savoured much
Good
friends, good times, a loved one’s touch.
Perhaps
my time seemed all too brief
Don’t
lengthen it now with undue grief
Lift
up your heart and share with me
God
wanted me now, He set me free.”
8.
The shadows are lengthening for all of us. When our turns comes to
cross the River, will our last conscious thoughts be of JMP, I wonder?
9.
Dear Sir and Ma’am, may God be with you, in Heavenly abode.