From Garba to Grounded.

 ~Too Much, Too Fast, Too Locked

I've always wanted to write about this, but somehow, it never happened. But now, let's talk about Navratri 2024- my favorite festival and the unforgettable experience that came with it.

I had stopped playing Garba since my 11th grade—maybe even before that—but for the past two or three years, I had started again with full energy. Well, as much energy as I could manage because I’m not exactly the most energetic person all the time. But this time, I was genuinely excited about the નવરાત્રી.

I had joined a Garba class a month and a half before the festival. Actually, I had joined a class in 2023 as well, but I wasn’t as excited back then. This year was different. I was all in. Every night, I played Garba till dawn, pushing my limits. And if you know me, you know how tough it is for me to stay awake that long. We were up until 6 or 7 in the morning, every single night, and on top of that, I had work in the morning. My whole routine was messed up. I didn’t realize it at the time, but my body had already started giving me signals.

Then came the નવમું નોરતું- the last day. I had saved my favorite outfit, a heavy white Chaniya choli, just for this day. We played Garba with all our hearts, knowing it was the last time this year. My legs were giving up, and my energy was drained, but I didn’t want to stop. After Garba, while everyone else went home to sleep, I decided to push myself even more.

For some reason, I thought it would be a great idea to go straight to Dakor with my parents. No sleep. Just straight-up travel mode. We left at 11 AM, visited the temple, and returned around 1 or 1:30 in the afternoon. On the way back, we had ‘ડાકોરનાં ગોટા‘, because obviously, that’s a must. By then, I was beyond exhausted. My legs weren’t working, and my body felt numb, but still, I didn’t realize how much I had pushed myself.

As soon as I reached home, I changed into my comfort clothes and collapsed onto my bed. And that was it—I slept for a straight 24 hours. From 2 PM to 2 AM. Gone.

Now, here comes the real disaster.

At 4 PM, my daily energy syrup alarm went off, but I didn’t wake up. My mom tried waking me up for dinner around 8, but I barely opened my eyes, checked my phone, and went right back to sleep. I didn’t even eat. I had no clue what was happening, and honestly, even today, I don’t know what happened in that deep sleep.

When I finally woke up at 2 AM, I was still half-conscious and groggy. I picked up my phone, and attempted my lock screen password—wrong. Tried again—wrong. I thought maybe my fingers weren’t working properly. Five attempts later, I was locked out for fifteen minutes.

At this point, I started panicking.

I had just bought my new iPhone 15, and with Apple’s security, it was no joke. And me, being overly smart, never used easy passwords like birthdays or special dates. I always go with random number sequences that I feel like using at the moment. Now, my brain was blank. I tried again—wrong. Then again—wrong. Before I knew it, I was locked out for an hour.

And that’s when it hit me.

All my data. My transferred WhatsApp chats. My college groups. My everyday conversations. Everything I had struggled to set up with that new phone—I was about to lose it all. And the worst part? I couldn't recall what my password was. I started crying. I called my close friends and cousins, hoping someone might remember, but obviously, no one knew because I never shared it with anyone.

For the next three days, I tried everything to recall my password. Thank God I had WhatsApp logged in on my laptop, so at least my work didn’t stop. But the stress? Unimaginable. I went through five-hour lockdowns and eight-hour lockdowns. Every time I got a new chance to enter the password, I was hopeful—only to fail again. By Monday morning, I had lost all hope.

At 9:30 am, I went to iVenus, praying for a miracle. But there was nothing they could do. I had one last attempt left before I had to reset the phone completely. I took a deep breath and entered the pin one final time—wrong. My heart dropped.

I had no choice but to reset the phone. Watching my phone get wiped clean after three months of use felt like a punch to the gut. My photos were backed up on Google Photos, but my WhatsApp chats? Gone.

That night was one of the most memorable yet disastrous experiences I’ve ever had. Navratri 2024 was incredible, but it ended with a realization I’ll never forget—sometimes, knowing your limits is just as important as pushing them.

And I’ve learned my lesson: never overdo it and always write down your damn passwords!