A trip of memories - old and new

As I sat in the car, early in the morning, I was looking forward to catching some sleep on the five hour drive. But just as we started on our way I realised that the driver needed directions at least till we reached the outskirts of Mumbai. There went my plans of shut eye and while navigating I took the opportunity to observe the recently resumed early morning activity in the city. 

We passed by markets getting ready to open up to the early morning customers looking for fruits, vegetables and flowers. Took me back to the pre-Covid times when every morning I would wait for the fresh flowers to be delivered for the morning Pooja. The fragrance and blooming petals always brought a smile to the face. In the initial months of CoVid there were no flowers to be offered and then slowly one started to get some from the trees below. These were literally "fresh flowers" albeit not the most fragrant. 

Moving on, we chanced upon schools that displayed merry signs of having reopened with all protocols to protect in place; as in person education once again gets its due credit. Of course the students and teachers were not on campus but the security staff had started to trickle in. I have heard how resuming the daily morning routine has become a novelty for all associated with the education system. But it's good to know that children can start mingling again. 

A few kilometres and a couple of tens of minutes passed by when I saw the scene that I wish I could click on my phone. A father and a daughter on a motorcycle were driving, seemingly to the daughter's college (there was no uniform and she looked older than sixteen) and on the way, on the motorcycle, the daughter was studying! Imagine her dedication! The father, bearing this in mind was driving on the left side, slow and steady. This was totally adorable and reminded me of the days when I used to get late to get to college and Papa had to drive me to the station. As he ensured that I caught the train timely, he did not have the luxury of a slow drive but he always avoided the potholes. In fact that is where I learnt the skill of driving smoothly. The love of parents is not just unconditional and enduring but also uplifting and soothing. That is why Papa insisted that I wake him up before I leave and I know he will be awake tomorrow night till I reach home. Under his watch I know I am always loved, protected and guided.

It was at this point that I decided to start writing and took out my phone. But before I could start, another scene filled my heart with gratitude for my parents. A father was dropping his daughter to school (she was in a red and white uniform with braided hair and was about eight years old) and riding pillion she hugged him tight. Her head was resting on his back and her eyes were shut. This cute little angel was trying to catch some sleep enroute. Well someone thinks of optimising sleep like I do! This one was a sight worth a million rupees and I think will be etched in my memory for a long time. 

Talking about parents I am taken back many years. Mother was visiting me in London and we had gone shopping; an activity that tires the both of us but had to be undertaken that day. On the way home, in the tube, I sat next to Mummy with my head resting on her shoulders and her hand caressing my head. I thought this was absolutely normal for a mother and daughter till I saw the mother of a young about ten year old girl sitting in front of us, literally throw the jacket back to her daughter. The tired child had put the jacket on the mother's lap hoping for some affection but not only did she get the garment back but also a quip that the mother was not her coolie or her dumping ground. I still remember looking at Mummy and thanking my stars. Well it's not that we both don't have disagreements or even the occasional fight. But the selfless affection and care that I am blessed with makes me realise over and over again how I won the parent lottery. 

Happy thoughts probably comatosed me because soon after I wrote the above, I was asleep and woke up closer to the destination as we passed by the Gandharpale Buddhist caves. It amazes me how much of history is strewn across the length and breadth of Maharashtra! While the caves are beautiful even from a distance, I was pleasantly surprised from there on to see green fields playing with the mountains in the background. Further ahead the fields soon were making way for the rivers and streams that were gently flowing by. Even in the scorching forty degrees celcius the water was a thick carpet over the river bed. That is what makes road travel special, it makes one appreciate nature, history and culture at close quarters.

Gives you an idea of what the eyes were capturing

Before I started my return journey, back to Mumbai, I had decided to ensure that I would capture the visual of the bouncing river and the steady mountains. So as a call came in, I wore my handsfree and rolled down the window. The wind blowing was warm but in between the call I did not want to miss the opportunity to capturing the visuals I had encountered the day before. This was a difficult call and one that in normal times would have extracted every ounce of my patience. But nature's bounty had me distracted and so I appeared naturally patient on the call. I am glad for nature's sway, always, but today it was an absolute welcome interference. 

Every kilometer was a combination of the hills cradling the fields, the river and the countryside huts. Occassionally a white spire of the temple would pop out from behind a cluster of trees and that peek-a-boo made me smile. The Marathi billboards in Devnagari script were a welcome change from the Mumbai version of Hindi billboards in the modern Latin Alphabet. I was enjoying the ride when I noticed the large ball of an orange in the sky. The setting sun seemed soothing and divine. The phone went clicking again and as a result I got two shots that captures the very essence of the beauty that my eyes witnessed. 

This first shot was where the orange ball caught my attention

Can you feel the lullabuy being sung......

As nightfall landed I had no more sights to see or views to shoot, so I decided to complete some work. Nearing Mumbai, with work out of the way, I chose to complete this post hoping to be able to get it online at night. If not tonight the weekend it will have to be. Till the next post and the next time take care and stay safe.  

A New Flight

In this topsy-turvy time, the one thing that has remained steadfast is the daily sunrise and sunset. In these uncertain times, the one thing that gives hope is the unrestricted and uninhibited flights of the soaring birds. In these strange times, the one thing that brings familiarity and comfort are those who you can be with. And that is what I saw as I walked this sixtieth evening of the corona quarantine times.

As the phone clicked to capture this image, I could not help but smile in gratitude and humility. Both the emotions came from three very different angles, three that I thought of sharing.

The very first one is in gratitude of nature and in humility of how even today, after humanity has plundered so much of it, nature seems to be working constantly to sustain humanity. The sun still shines to give us food, the rivers still flow to give us water and the wind still blows to ease the heat. Nature may want to reclaim its glory, but it is not blazing Armageddon. The warning shot may be with rage but not in revenge. It is those open spaces that have not been plundered to be populated by mankind that are sanctuaries of safety, and ready to take those who will accept the unfamiliar ways of life. Such love, compassion and tolerance are the most prominent traits of mothers and it is no wonder that from time in memorial we have been taught of the beauty of mother nature and mother earth. I bow down to the greatness of these mothers who are trying to forgive us and help us find a new way of life that may be more of collaboration and co-existence.

The second one is in gratitude of the untiring and heroic service of the front line workers, and in humility of the unrelenting human spirit.  These have not been easy times even for those who have comfort of a roof on their heads and food in their stomachs. And in these times when you want to be with the ones you love the healthcare workers are rallying day after day to ensure that they can help as many recover as possible, not just from corona but from other ailments as well. All the while being the most vulnerable to this so far incurable infection. Just as them, it is the law enforcers who hear the brickbats and the criticism and yet are out there to ensure that they can maintain discipline which is the first line of prevention in the current times; even if it means they catch the virus. Joining these brave forces are the city sanitation and cleanliness workers who are ensuring that the spread of other diseases is curtailed, the public transport employees who are getting all of the above to their stations of duties, the logistics teams ferrying medicine and food globally and locally to make sure everyone has enough, those who are getting the essentials to you and me putting themselves at risk and then there are the volunteers. There are so many other segments who are working to keep life as uncomplicated as it can be, that I cannot name them all here, but I sincerely salute them all.

And last but not the least I am in gratitude of the those who told me I was being a romantic, forcing me to see the other side of the coin and I am humbled by their acceptance of the stark reality. At the start of the pandemic, as India went into a lockdown, I said India would never be the same again. Of course, the world was never going to be the same again but the romantic in me theorised that this was the nation’s second world war moment. The moment where the millennials stopped to spend and started to save, where the entrepreneurs stopped to cut the pie and started to cooperate to grow the pie, and where the politicians forgot their differences and adopted bipartisanship to sail us through to the other side of the storm. What the last two months have highlighted though is while the millennials may be seeing a new way of life, our industry and political system is far too hard wired to bring in the shake that we need. It has been disappointing to say the least!  We could have done a lot more and for a lot less! We could have done for a lot more with a lot less! There truly have been some great decisions but the setback is when we look at some of the more recent decisions. They are not just confounding but incomprehensible. I want answers and have reached out for them but am but a mere ordinary citizen and hence received only what I deserve: silence. My balloon deflated, I feel defeated because probably naïve as it was, I overinvested in the belief of good and the judgement of the wise.

Yet in this defeat lies victory: victory of the human spirit of which mine is a part! I may have learnt a lesson but I am ready to embrace this new normal, ready to embody the sun daily and do my part, ready to hope again and fly with the birds and ready to stand with those who are mine because they are the ones who I answer to and who understand.

Be well and stay safe!

Sunsets

For everything that interests us there is that one aspect that completely mesmerises and captivates. When I consider music, I will have to confess a strong bias towards stringed instruments and Indian classical. As I turn to books, I would be lying if I said anything captivates me more than political thrillers or geopolitical history. And the minute I venture to photography, there are enough and more shots of sunsets and trees that will evidence my prejudice very aptly. Of the two, picking any one  would be a dilemma. But if I was forced to, at this moment, and only at this moment ,maybe my pick would be sunsets. 

The first vivid memory that I have of a beautiful sunset is from a summer holiday in the hills of Kumaon region. We had driven from Nainital to Kausani via Almora. It had been a long drive, and by the time we reached our rest house in Kausani it was evening. Getting out of the car I felt the cool wind hit my young cheeks. To avoid it I turned in the opposite direction. As soon as I did, the view in front of me had me enthralled. The setting sun had spread sweet orange flames across the sky, and the snow clad mountain peaks were reflecting the warmth of these in shades of peach and pink. No shade of these three colours was missing from the canvas and that perfect painting of nature has been etched in my memory ever since. Had I attempted to capture the moment, I don't think I could have done that view any justice. 

After that Mumbai sunsets captivated me. Whether it was Priyadarshini park, Tata Gardens, Worli Sea Face or Hanging Gardens; I have spent many evenings just watching the sun melt away into the sea and spread a blanket of harmony on this city riddled with chaos. Through my teens and early twenties, post a good day it seemed as if the setting sun was creating a delicious orange syrup for me to dip my ice lolly into and enjoy. Every tough day that I ended with the sun, the ball of fire just slipped into its watery bed and sent a message to rest and rejuvenate for  a brighter next day. While I saw many sun rises as well, none of them spoke to me like the sunsets did. 

If I thought it was the Mumbai sunsets that were special, my view changed as soon as I started to travel. Whether it was the plains of Jaipur or Fontainebleau, the mountain tops of Cape Town or Santorini, the cruises of Budapest or Quebec, or my days in my balcony on the Thames; every sunset brought with it new smiles and evoked new emotions. Each sunset, even today, gives my dreams wider wings to soar higher. Every sunset puts a perspective to every struggle I have faced. All sunsets bring forth an enhanced version of nature's beauty all around us. And so did the red and orange sunset  of yesterday; and probably that's the reason at this moment I am partial to sunsets - the red, orange, pink, peach and yellow paintings of nature.