waves – Simple Moments of Life

We are lounging on reclining beach chairs, staring at the ocean that stretches beyond one’s comprehension.

Waves vie with each other to play tag with the beach – the younger waves, smart and nimble, as they compete with each other in a race that has no end; the older waves, sedate.

The sun, which was a bright yellow ball till a few minutes back, slowly takes on a warm orange hue that defies description. Within this beautiful orange are a million shades of pink, red, yellow and orange.

The clouds form molten orange streaks across the sky, basking in the sun’s reflection. The sun’s outline can now be seen, a huge golden orb that is moving down the horizon.

Silhouettes of birds dot the sky. Faraway coconut and palm trees sway in the evening breeze.

The waves catch the reflection of the golden sun and throw up a stunning light display on the water’s surface. The play of colours is superlative.

We settle down with refreshing milkshakes; to ponder upon the mysteries of nature – of the indefatigable ocean and the dancing waves.

In a matter of minutes, the sun slips out of sight into oblivion, into other faraway lands. The crickets set up their nightly chorus.

The waves are calmer now, winding down for the day; for the same cycle will repeat tomorrow, and bring with it another day full of promise.

We are at Kanyakumari, the southernmost tip of the Indian subcontinent. The entire family is up at 5.30 a.m. to watch the sun rise. Daylight arrives with the bluish-silver colour of the sky. We wait now, and as we watch, the sky turns a pinkish orange, lighting up the clouds around it. Molten orange cotton-puff clouds streak the sky. The pinkish orange glow spreads across the horizon, as we wait with bated breath.

The Indian Ocean catches these golden moments, and reflects them in the calm waters of the morning. A few boats bob about near the beach, tired out from their fishing trips of the day before.

Again, in just a few minutes, the pinkish orange is replaced by golden yellow light and there, peeking into the horizon, is the golden Sun. Over the next few minutes, this golden ball rises up and takes over the sky. We watch in amazement.

As the day progresses, the warm colours of the morning give way to the bright and white light of the Sun as it moves across the sky. The breeze and the waves play with each other throughout the day, sometimes energetic, sometimes gentle. The swishing of the waves, and the gentle sounds of the breeze talking to the coconut palms, soothe the ears.

We see a number of vendors selling sea-shells of different colours, shapes and types. The lady in the shop asks me to place the shell against my ear. My ears hear the ocean and its waves, the stories that this shell has to tell me about its adventures in the sea.

We are in harmony with the waves, the breeze, the rocks and the Sun. We feel a sense of timelessness, as we watch the Universe at work, quietly going about its day.

Pure bliss.

Some photos that we captured.