Being in awe!

I work quite close to the Shanghai (Hongqiao) Airport. Exactly how close, I didn’t know till I almost touched the nose of an aircraft. Yes, a live, engine-throbbing aircraft.

I was returning to office after an errand at my bank. The winter had not quite released its hold over us, but all around me flowers were blooming and there was a general sense of “pleasant”ness in the air.

One of those ideal days, when you are as light as a balloon and nothing could go wrong with your life.

One of those ideal days, when you follow the saying, and literally smell the flowers. And even take a picture or two.

One of those ideal days, to plug in your headset to your favourite music and croon to it.

One of those ideals day, when you deviate from the path normally taken, mesmerized by the grandeur of an aircraft.

Normally, I would have taken the straight road and come to office directly. But even from where I stood, I could see the giant machine. The passengers boarding the aircraft seemed so tiny when compared to it.

I knew I had to go there. It was airport territory and I knew I was trespassing. It still did not deter my legs from taking the turn and walking straight ahead.

What if they shot me down?

Who cares?

There, I had reached the airport boundary which was marked by a wire fence. I did not want to touch it, for fear of being electrocuted. But I inched as close as I could to view that grand giant bird.

A distance of approximately 20 feet stood between me and the aircraft. But that was enough for me. I could feel myself so little beside this beast of a machine.

Now, you might be wondering what could be so mesmerizing with an aircraft, or how I could possibly make big talk about a machine that I was familiar with from a very early age. Oh cmon, what’s the big deal about an aircraft?

Yes, I had seen and travelled in aircrafts since the 19^th day of my arrival in this world. But when you travel, you have a lot of things in your mind – leaving behind people you love, passports, tickets, pending work. So much that you are not left with enough time to admire the aircraft standing on the tarmac.

And then when it is finally time to board, everybody is in a mad rush to enter the aircraft at the same time. Almost like you would lose a seat if you didn’t enter first.

So on that day when I saw the aircraft, face to face, or rather nose to nose, I couldn’t help but stand there and stare at the massive beast. And wonder about the great power it held within itself. About the laws of nature it defied and manipulated to stay in air. About mankind and the intelligence that created this raw, meaty combination of strength and beauty.

On walking back, I was reminded of the lyrics in Ronan Keating’s song ‘I hope you dance’.

“…I hope you never lose your sense of wonder

You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger

…I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean…”

I might be getting old, but this I’ll promise to myself. No matter how old I get, as long as this world holds wonders in it, I will always take a detour to admire it. Even if I could get shot for it…

Being Old

“These people might be crazy”. To anyone born and reared in the southern most tip of India with closed and conservative social values, this would be the natural reaction when you see some fifty odd oldies grouped together at a community ground and dancing to Chinese music. If this happened at my place, they would get a few unfriendly (read hurtful) remarks.

As ever, my curiosity held me there and I watched for a while. I could imagine what my grandmother would have said if I asked her to take up community dancing. She would have given me the ‘Top 10 reasons not to dance when you are old’, which would include “I am too old” and “what would people say if they knew”.

My grandmother would never have dared to do this, and yet, in this neighbouring country I see the old folk dancing away, without any inhibitions of old age or worries about a judgemental society.

After a few minutes, I decided to go my way, mentally applauding this country and the people in it for being different. I hardly took a few steps, before I saw this.

A couple, tired from dancing were sitting down on a bench in the adjacent bus stop. The old lady was resting her foot on her husband’s lap and he was rubbing her aching soles.

Marriage is nothing but a constant companionship. It takes so much to fall in love, and even more to stay in love. To live 20 or 30 years together, without losing the attraction for each other – that is one daunting, almost impossible task with an outcome that can never be guaranteed.

I wondered about the old couple – one taking care of the other. This is the jackpot that we all dream of, a partner who stays by us through thick and thin, the partner who will untiringly rub our soles when we are tired from dancing. A partner with whom we are not afraid of growing old and being old.

That cold blue night gave me a new energy. After having failed in many of my relationships and having coming to the conclusion that love is a futile, hurt inducing exercise, the sight of the old couple dancing away in the dusk of their lives encouraged me.

They must also have fought and decided to give up. But here they are, at the end of it, braving all the storms – providing comfort and joy to each other.

Some day, some time, I will again believe in the magic of love. When I do, if he comes along, I promise to be that untiring partner who will rub his soles. And I hope he will too. 

Dog Love

We were well into March, and yet, there seemed to be no relief from the cold winter in Shanghai. I was still stuffed under multiple layers of clothing, and a couple of times I had come close to swearing at the Good Lord for cursing this part of the world with a “never ending” winter.

The wind kept blowing so strongly, that I was afraid it might even blow me away as I walked to office. The shops on the roadside were opening, many of the shopkeepers were just sweeping clean their front walk as part of their morning routine. I smiled at our regular fruit guy as I walked past him and made a mental note to buy some strawberries when I returned from office that day.

I was about to take the turn to my office when a furry little creature ran past me, almost hitting me. A dog. A species that I have no particular care for, even bordering on the verge of hate. I have never had a soft corner for these creatures, but today would reveal an incident that would result in me giving them a little more respect.  

I looked ahead to see what was the creature running from – it could be a nasty shopkeeper wielding a stick to thrash its brains out. Hopefully, I searched for someone that fit the bill and quickly came to the conclusion that it was not running away from someone – but rather TO someone.

Probably to its owner who was careless enough to leave their pet behind. Usually, at this point, I would shake my head and walk ahead, totally uninterested in the happenings in Dogworld. Today, curiosity or maybe, my instincts prompted me to stay there and check whether the dog reached safely to its master.

What I turned around to see was different. The dog was baring its teeth and standing on the edges of the road, as if trying to cross the road but could not because of the onslaught of traffic. Where could it be rushing off to in such a hurry, I wondered.

My answer was right across the road. A lady was straining against the leash of a dog, which was trying hard to resist. The lady struggled to walk with the dog equally struggling not to co-operate.

I could see Dog no. 2’s resistance wane as the lady eventually started to drag him (or her. At this point, I would like to call it as ‘her’) along the harsh road. On the other side of the road, when the traffic saw a respite, I could see the hero of my story dashing to cross the street.

Too late. The lady had managed to drag dog no.2 to the gates of the community where she probably lived. From where I stood, I could see dog no.2 give as much resistance as possible, digging her claws into the hard road, trying to buy as much time for her friend to reach her. All the while, straining her neck on the harsh leash trying to turn around and keep her eyes on him.

Life is unfair – almost always. Not just in our world, but in the canine world too. By the time, he managed to cross the road without getting run over, the lady had disappeared with her pet into the depths of the concrete maze within the gates.

I could see the dog, worn and breathless gazing at the community gates. Though its back was turned to me, I could see in my mind, a pair of sad brown eyes. As if not willing to accept defeat, he walked to the shade of a tree and sat down.

I wondered, when was the last time I had run for a friend’s sake. Hell, when was the last time I did something – anything- for a friend?

Next time, I promised myself, if I ever have the chance to run for a friend, I will run like it is the end of the world. Even if the gates close on me.