Let me be honest in saying publicly via this post that when I started my life in 2021, I never hoped that I would survive the next 365 days. Therefore, I decided to take one day at a time, just like in test cricket, one ball at a time as a batsman. You never know what comes next; those speedy bouncers and those saucy spinning balls of life that test your every potential. While writing this post, I realised that I survived those fathomless trenches that my life went through in the last 364 days and a few hours. I am starting to believe that something mysterious and hidden power has definitely helped me out, and I will always remain thankful for that. I take this opportunity to thank all those who helped me out in living this year, and I apologise to all those who I have knowingly or unknowingly hurt in any manner.

The Covid scare took over a significant part of 2020 and 2021, and we all have gone through a lot. Covid has ruined so many of our plans, and it has also allowed us to self-reflect in some fashion. Many of us (at least I, myself) have realised the meaning of self-importance and what it means to “live”. I started to prioritise my physical health, primarily my mental health (which surely took numerous counselling sessions), and slowly my professional life started getting a bit better. In the process, I must thank my doctoral supervisor for being a constant source of optimism, some of my colleagues and friends, who I treat as my mentors to have helped me go through the difficulties.

2021, wow! You, in the end, became the “best” year for me in terms of my professional and research life. Together with my fellow collaborators, we got our research accepted at top-class venues like PNAS, Nature, Machine Learning journal, etc. In terms of teaching, I started formally teaching my new course on Deep Learning that was the best for many of them based on the students’ verbal feedback. Although the teaching was fully in a virtual mode, I devoted a lot of time to make it successful and I really enjoyed every moment of tha. I met new collaborators, made some new friends, and learned tennis (which I had once thought of learning and now I am pretty good). It seemed like a complete personal growth: a journey from an emotional and psychological pit to the top of the world in research. Am I proud of myself? Hell yah, I am. Now while I look back, I feel a sudden rush of joy running through my whole body.

Then, towards the end of 2021, something that I anticipated happened. Yes, you read it right; I “anticipated”. My father got ill with an intense illness. It has made him weak, taken all his mental strength and in turn, my mother is supporting him, and she has to suffer too in the process. As a son, I am trying my best to help them out; and pray that every single second that they become okay. I hope this new year makes them “new” in terms of health, wealth and happiness.

I don’t know what awaits me the following year (2022), but I am sure I am strong enough to handle whatever comes. Maybe I will get a chance to live in another country of my like for some time, pursue some new direction of research. Probably, I will see myself as a “PhD” (finally!) and make my (late) grandparents proud. I hope I will become a little more wise and young.

Adieu, 2021!

Signing off,
T