A car ride with my son

My son and I had to attend an event last weekend. As we got ready to leave, the skies opened up. The rain showed no signs of letting up and we decided to cab it to the event. After a long wait for a cab, we finally managed to find one.

We got in and settled down. When I looked at my son to ask something, he had already put on his airpods and was staring ahead, immersed in his music. I smiled and looked outside the window, enjoying the rain and the water drops rolling down the windshield.

As the cab weaved through traffic, I took a quick trip down memory lane. When my son was younger, and when we would go on cab rides together, he would chatter non-stop about animals and share some interesting facts that he had learnt about them. We called it our own special Animal Talk Time or ATT. There were other things we discussed too! At times, I would plead with him to stay quiet or even slow down when he talked. He would constantly move about on the seat and keep talking, his eyes bright and his face animated.

But last week’s cab ride was very different. I looked at my son a couple of times, finding it hard to believe how quiet that little boy had become. He caught me looking and mouthed a silent “what?”. I nodded my head to say “nothing”. He just tapped my hand and went back to his music.

After the event, we went down to the cafeteria for a quick bite. He asked me what I wanted and found us a table. He made me sit there and went to get the food, asking me to relax. I felt pampered. He was back soon and we ate, chatting a bit about this and that. Many of my questions received monosyllabic replies.

When we were done, we headed back to the taxi stand. Soon, we were on our way home. Before he could put on his airpods, I reminded him about our ATT days. His eyes lit up and he agreed that those were truly fun times. He bent sideways and touched his head to mine, patted my hand again and went back to his music. I smiled and went back to my thoughts. It was a beautiful evening indeed!

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Couple goals

It is eight in the morning and I realize that I have slept-in. I get out of bed, wash up and walk lazily to the kitchen to wish my mom a good morning.

My mom greets me with a cheery good morning and makes frothy filter coffee for both of us. We head back to the living room to sit down, enjoy our coffee and have our first chat of the day; chats that can be silly or profound and chats that can easily slide into blissful and comfortable silences too!

But today is different. As we sit down, I exclaim loudly, “Amma, look the monkeys are back.”

We take our coffee cups and head to the balcony window and watch in silence. There are two monkeys, husband and wife perhaps, sharing the joys of a beautiful morning. They are seated on the balcony’s grill, facing away from us.

As we continue to watch, they gradually turn to face each other. As we watch they bend and touch their heads together. A beautiful moment, where no words are needed. Maybe they are sharing a beautiful secret, maybe they have just fallen in love, maybe they are reliving nostalgic memories……!

And in just a few minutes, one hugs the other rather protectively. The sun has slowly started its ascent across the sky, but our monkeys stay put for nearly an hour, enjoying the morning, enjoying each other’s company and revelling in their love for each other.

My mom and I look at each other and smile. What a lovely way to start the day!!

Tinkling bells

I stand on the balcony with my morning cup of coffee – strong, South Indian filter coffee brewed to perfection. What better way to begin the day!

It’s the weekend, and the world outside is slowly waking up. The usual morning rush of traffic is missing; just a few early morning joggers – moving neon spots on grey pavements.

I sip my coffee and sigh in contentment. It is then that I hear them – gentle tinkling bells. Maybe the neighbour’s chimes?

Where I grew up, cows and horses were common visitors to our neighbourhood, as there were lots of green meadows around the area where we lived.

While the horses were wild, the cows usually belonged to local shepherds. Most of these cows had bells tied around their necks. Beautiful little bells that tinkled when the cows grazed and mooed to each other.

The cows could be seen on and off on the hillside all through the day, as we went about our daily lives. And when the sun would finally head west, the shepherd would appear out of nowhere and drive the cows home.

In those days, there was a lady who came to our home each day to help my mom with household chores. She would arrive by eleven a.m. and leave late in the afternoon.

This lady’s husband owned a few cows, and on some afternoons, when the lady was in the backyard, her cows would pass by our home.

One of the cows – whom the lady lovingly called Lakshmi – would always come close to the fence as if to talk to her. The lady would talk in ‘cow-language’, love dripping in her every sentence. Lakshmi, the cow, would stand and listen, hanging on to her every word.

Image Courtesy – http://www.pexels.com

It was such a special bond, a pure outpouring of love. And as Lakshmi walked away, the bell around her neck would tinkle. The lady would then settle down to her post lunch betelnut ritual, her eyes following Lakshmi with love, till the sounds of the bell would finally merge with the breeze.

I come back to the present. These bells that I hear now are reminiscent of those perfect, lovely afternoons and the bonds of a very special love!

Up in the clouds….

We are up in the hills, on our way to Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya, also known as the ‘Scotland of the East’ and ‘the abode of clouds’!

The road snakes right and left, as our car makes its way up the hills. As we go higher, we are literally in the clouds. It’s as if the clouds have come down to play a game of hide and seek. Our car slices through these clouds, as they glide past us, busily going about their day.

We see flashes of green, then white, and then green. The sun shines on a glorious, blue sky. The world looks happy and cheerful.

All along the way, we see the locals going about their day, busy with farming and mining. This beauty surrounds them everyday. I feel envious.

We stop now and then at a viewing point; to stretch our limbs and soak-in the beauty all around us. The distant calls of birds can be heard, and the occasional vehicle. Otherwise, there is only a deep silence. There is harmony, there is peace.

At one such viewing point, we sit down to look at the merry clouds and the sedate hills below.

We sit down, each of us wrapped up in our own thoughts, trying to understand this beauty and to relate it to our crazy lives that have so many deadlines.

Here, there are no deadlines, life seems simple and peaceful. We are in no hurry to leave.

There are fresh pineapple stalls along the way, and hundreds of varieties of Indian pickles on sale.

We sink our teeth into the delicious and succulent pineapples, watching the road fade away into the distance.

As we go higher, the clouds envelope us completely, in a welcoming embrace. We stop at the Lake Umiam view point, where trees, mountains and lake have all merged with the clouds.

Brrrr…it is cold. We watch the lake from above, visible on and off. Faraway lights are twinkling through the cloud cover.

There is a mobile tea stall (in the boot of a car), where we slurp cups of hot, masala chai. We walk up and down, exclaiming at everything.

After all, we are not up in the clouds often..!

Expressive lemur strikes a chord

It is a rainy day and we are at the zoo. There is a steady downpour. Our shoes make sloshing sounds in the water, throwing back drops of water on our trousers.

We walk around, looking at each enclosure. Most of the animals seem worn out by the rain. They are seated in their shelters. Some, like the hyena, continue to pace, back and forth, oblivious to the rain and the visitors.

We then move on to a series of inter-connected enclosures that house a few naughty monkeys and some ring-tailed lemurs.

In the first room, a fight seems to have erupted between the monkeys and two lemurs. They tease, chatter and chase each other frantically – up and down the branches.

The other ring tailed lemurs also watch this fight, their bodies braced for action. 

We smile and move on. The second room has a few lemurs, the loners, sitting by themselves.

When we reach the third room, we laugh out aloud, for seated all alone, right in the middle of the room is a lemur. Just look at his expression – 

We just love the look on his face. We wonder what he is trying to express.

Seems like he is saying, “Whatever!” 

This expression strikes a chord.

• This is the expression I wear when I have not had my morning coffee.
• This is the expression my children have when I narrate a joke that they find boring.
• This is the expression when one has just finished a difficult exam.
• This is the expression after a high-thrill ride you have been on (one that your children have forced you on..and you unknowingly said yes to!)
• This is also me at the end of a long day.

I can relate to the lemur’s expression at many levels.

Bye little friend.

The frog party and a rainy day

There is something so beautiful about a grey, rainy day. Life takes on a different pace, everyday sounds takes on different notes, when they mix with the music of rain drops.

Umbrellas and ponchos bloom – vibrant and colourful. And if one is lucky, like I am, you are with friends, walking down a beautiful road and get to see hundreds of frogs hopping and leaping in merriment.

We stop. Transfixed. These little fellows are surely headed to a party..maybe a birthday party. They pause, they hop, they gossip and hop some more!

I capture a short video…..

We enjoy their progress and continue to walk, the pitter patter of the rain keeping us company.

I stop to look at a cypress tree, loaded with shining water droplets, waiting to rain down on an unsuspecting passer-by or a child, who will giggle and enjoy the moment completely.

There is a solitary sparrow, hopping about and the gentle lotus leaf that plays with water droplets.

The cobbled stones have had a wash and glisten in the grey light.

We continue our walk down the road. On our way back, we stop at a cafe nearby for some hot coffee. As we head home, we see some frogs, still on their way to the party. Maybe they had to work late, maybe they had to run some errands at the last minute.

They look so cute, these frogs. The rain has petered out, but big drops plop down from the trees and ledges of buildings.

Digital simplicity

Last year, one of my treasured possessions – a hard disk with my complete digital photo archive – crashed.  I do have backups, but this was the ‘Mother HDD’, with every file slotted, tagged and organized by date, time, folder. When it comes to my digital archive I suffer from a serious case of OCD, and then some.

I was miserable but was lucky enough to be able to retrieve most of the data – over 9 GB worth of photographs.  But sadly, when I opened the new hard disk, I realized that I had to reorganize, re-tag and re-slot every single file.  Most names and references to date and time were gone though some files were untouched.  It’s been a long year. Phew!

However, through this entire archival journey, I got to relive some of the best moments in my life –  working life, marriage, children and friends.  When I look back, I realize how many wonderful moments life has thrown at me, and the many lessons I have learned along the way.

Thankfully, I am on the last leg of this arduous re-archival journey.  Very soon, I will let out a whoop of joy and probably weep tears of sheer relief from the monotony of this task, that has bitten-off huge chunks of my free time.

This afternoon, as I sifted through the last 2000 files, I chanced upon these photos.  These are photos of my son’s Grade 1 school notebook.  The teacher seems to have rewarded my son with  ‘smileys’ for his efforts in writing.  My son has converted the teacher’s smileys into a couple of cute animals, with ears and tails.  Sharing these photos with you.

 

My digital drill seems to have been worth it.  After all, such simple moments are the ones that need capturing.  These are the moments that make up the mosaic of our lives. Simple moments of love, joy and innocence, captured for posterity.

Unexpected visitor

The afternoon heat is stifling. All the fans are churning out hot air, in varying degrees of aggravation. The aircon is  lifeless. The leaves are still, glistening in the sun. The few pigeons that are sitting on the ledges of the building seem worn out by the heat and seem too tired to move. They sit patiently, their wait punctuated only by the occasional flapping of their wings.

I decide to open the balcony door fully, not sure if it will help in any way. I look at the sky. A perfect, blue sky with cotton-puff clouds looks back at me.

I stand on the balcony, staring at everything and nothing.

I look at my plants. They need more water. And as I look at my hibiscus plant, I see a bud that is just about to bloom. I can see just a hint of red peeping out of green. Maybe another two days. I smile. My smile widens as I see that we have a surprise visitor.

A beautiful dragonfly is visiting our hibiscus plant – elegantly poised on the thin branch, perfectly balanced, the gossamer-like wings glinting in the afternoon sun. He is oblivious to my presence, and is busy taking a breather.

The faintest breeze causes the dragonfly’s wings to flutter just a tiny bit.

I stand completely awed. Such detailing and such perfection in this small creature. He is obviously there for a reason, known only to himself.  Nothing seems to disturb his tranquility. He sits there for a long time.

I go inside to get a drink, he has still not moved an inch. Looks like he is in deep meditation.

I move closer and take a few pictures.  My chores beckon, and I go indoors, forgetting the hot sun and only remembering those glistening wings.

When I come back after sometime, my visitor is gone. Sharing some pictures that I took…