A rain to play

I was on my from the office. The sky was clouded and it was going to break upon any moment.  Putting the last ounce of energy to my peddle, I wanted to reach home as soon as possible.

On either side of the road, there was an unusual commotion. Hawkers trying to pack their road side shops. Vegetable guy trying to put his cart under the temporary hood of the hardware shop. A mother pulling her princess who wanted something which she forbade. People hurrying into and out of the supermarket. The auto fellow putting his covers on either side parked on the side of the road. An impatient young fellow anxiously looking to the right side for his bus and then to his watch.  The old tea shop fellow heating his  pot to serve the tea for the extra people who will barge into the shop once it rains. Everybody were in hurry. Like waiting impatiently for it to start. 

I was wishing not to get wet. But secretly, I didn't want to miss the fun of those cold water droplets sprinkling over my face. Nevertheless, I was paddling with all my might to reach home; much earlier than the usual. Otherwise, I would have bothered myself to stop in the market and indulge myself in some of my silly vices. But that day I just couldn't do that.

So I was peddling.

Before I was about to turn towards my street from the main road, it began.

It began as a drizzle. A kind of one that you ignore. A kind of one that hastens you, but still you wouldn't mind getting few drops on your hair. Making it wet as if you had put some wet hair cream.

I slowed down. Not because I wanted to get wet, but my breaks were then less effective. And the thought of having some casualty had slowed down my adrenaline.

By the time I crossed 2nd cross, it was  pouring down. My casual shirt was already wet. I thought about the mud strips that would be getting accumulated on it. This was bound to happen as my cycle didn't have its rear fenders. I could feel the dirt sprayed from the rear wheel on to my neck. To my relief, the down pour washed it away as soon as it got in there.

 As I entered the 8th cross, rain had reduced it tempo. However,  the green canopy through which I had to pass didn't make it seem so. Big drops along with leaves were welcoming me into my last leg of the journey. On either side of the road, which was kind of convex, rivulets flowed. Some places where it was not properly tarred, pockets of muddy water had already stagnated. And in some places, it was overflowing too.

I slowed down further when I heard some shrieking. Suddenly, a gate opened and a boy and a girl ran out. Both were sharing an umbrella; a pink one with those Disney characters on it. It was not large enough for both of them. Suddenly the boy stepped out of the umbrella. From the gate, somebody was shouting. I thought it was in Kannada. But I was not sure. The rain and wind had blunted my auditory and cognition skills.  May be it was his mother shouting at him to stand inside the umbrella. I noticed that the little girl was advising something to guy. It was cute sight to watch. The girl in her white and black sleeveless frock, with a serious face, saying something and the other fellow, smirking and, telling back something which for sure was nonsense. At that moment, the girl suddenly threw off the umbrella and both started to laugh. Shrieks of laughter, if to be told perfectly. They were jumping up and down and joyfully getting  wet. Seeing this,  the lady behind the gate was also smiling.

Watching them, I stopped my cycle and got down and started walking. As I walked past them, the little boy jumped into a mud pool, splashing all dirt onto my office attire. But instead of getting fumed up, I laughed.

I too wanted to play in the rain. I ran inside my home to come back and play.

For Rain: Boondan Boondan


"Boondan Boondan Barse Meha,
Kajrari Kaari Badariya,
Aise Naache Mora Manva,
Jaise Banme Mor Papiha"

Credit:Maatibaani ft. Ankita Joshi & Noor Mohammed Sodha
Source:http://maatibaani.com/
  

A Valentine Fever

I was late. I didn't want myself to be late. At least not that day. I never use mirror. I didn't have to. I always believed appearances can be deceptive. I knew how my face should look. I had my smile. That was to stick there till I saw her. She was on the way. I had asked her to get down at Borivilli station instead of Bandra. I would go there and then pick her up. I locked the door and left. The sky was cloudy, but I was sure that it won't rain. And as usual, I was decieved. By the time I took the ticket to Dadar, it was pouring down. There is a beautiful commotion that spreads when it rains in Bombay. Different shades of umbrellas suddenly come into life. Many don't care to take one, and they happily get wet. While being, ladies talk about what they are going to prepare for the dinner that night. I gleamed at this beautiful commotion. I loved Mumbai, so did she. I was all wet. Not because I didn't have an umbrella but because somehow I felt like getting wet. Suddenly, there was an announcement. It was of the running information about a slow train to Borovilli. I didn't want to take that. Instead, I preferred to take a fast train so that I could see her without having more stops in between us. I couldn't wait any further still I didn't want to waste time either. Finally, my rationality prevailed over my heart and I waited for a fast train. As the destiny often does to me, the next fast train got canceled. I remember not crying at that time. May be my tears got dissolved in downpour that was happening. After waiting for 15 min, the next slow train to Borovilli came. This time I succumbed to my heart. I boarded it. Another 15 min more to the final destination. I couldn't wait any further. Before the station halted, I jumped out and ran to platform 6. That was the last platform in that station. I had to cross an underground pass and to reach the platform, i had to climb a flight of stair. While running towards her, climbing those stairs, I didn't know how she would be looking. I tried hard to concentrate and have a mental picture of her. But I couldn't because before I could, I had already finished climbing the stairs. She was wearing black and white horizontal stripped T-shirt with yellow strips around the neck. There was the silver earring that I gifted her and she looked very beautiful with the red bindi, that she put just for me. Source:http://www.wallpapercasa.com/girl_woman_rain_umbrella_train_railway_station_platform_suitcase-116697.html And on the concrete bench for the passengers to rest, she sat. Like a little kid waiting to be picked up. She was texting something on her mobile and as I ran into her, she turned her head toward me. And then I saw this most beautiful smile that I had ever seen in my life. At that moment, I felt like I was born to be just present there. Just enough to see her.

Colors and Life

I have a Rubik cube in my room. Its a 3x3x3 cube. Sometimes back I knew how to solve it.  I didn't solve it because I wanted to solve it. I solved it because there was competition to solve it. I wanted to take part in it. And to solve, I didn't use any of brains. I just followed some standard textbook approach to solve it. I used to admire all people who used to solve it. Always thought they belong to an elitist class of intellectuals. However, the first moment, when I solved it, my adulation for them fell. Not because I was one among them now but merely because I assumed they must have followed the same steps that I followed. There was nothing intellectual about it. In fact, I felt it was like cheating. Cheating with yourself.

A 3x3x3 Rubik cube has 43,252,003,274,489,856,000 ways of arranging it. But only one arrangement is correct. It is nearly impossible to solve it given that there are these many combinations!

I think life as a Rubik cube. There are lot of ways to live. But in the end, we are supposed to be in that one state. This means that there nearly one minus quintillion ways  to have a complete life yet not being the perfect.

But there is a difference in this analogy between Rubik cube and life. We always come to know when a Rubik cube gets solved but how do we know the life we had, reached the perfect note. Is there going to be any sign ?

There are quintillion states and it seems impossible to solve. Yet, people solve the Rubik cube. And they come to that perfect combination where all colors are in harmony. Many have done it and many will do it. Of that many, many will just follow the steps I followed.

I stopped solving Rubiks now. I have forgotten how to solve. But I know I will live on. And hope that, may be, all the colors of my life will fall into place.