Sittin in Plano, texas. In a borrowed room, watching the Dallas sun set from a borrowed window.. I feel a throbbing in my heart for my own. I am lonely. Lonely among Sizing documents, lonely among the sights America has to offer, lonely among people, lonely among my suitcase, the shoes I have bought, am lonely among the colorado t shirt which lies in front of me...
And then I see Aditi's pictures of Leh and kashmir. I see the lovely barala chala among her foto albums.. rising majestic in snow and rock.And my eyes mist over for my country. I aint a patriot.. But I do love India for what it is.. The crowning Himalayas, the rippling rivers unclean with the dust of human souls, the hungry bay of bengal, the calm Arabian, 7 sisters of the east, Porbandar of the west, camels in the desert, half mad cities,Shah Rukh Khan, the marina necklaces, last rocks, the land of " illa ma ",Sweaty Mangroves, Marble Plains, the museums of the nawabs, the creativity in living :) Yes I miss my country so much that I am unable to get the sizing numbers for walmart correct.Everytime I open the excel sheet my eyes brim over with longing!
Last year me and my family went on a road trip to Gangtok and Darjeeling. I will perhaps never forget the magic of the Nathula. I remember how all of a sudden we declared a plan to pack up and run away from the heat of Ranchi. The best plans are the No plans :)
Now that I sat to write about it so many months later I thought the details would get hazy. But no.. How I can ever forget the sun shining from the snow white peaks of the Kachenjunga. The melody of Darjeeling is beautiful, if only you can hear it. Most of the time it is lost in tourist din and chowmein. We had no hotel bookings and me and my brother walked around in the rain to find a nice place to stay. Ha! The bloody Darjeeling touts! Sunsets in Darjeeling are beautiful.. Almost heartbreaking! So are the pinned butterflies in the quiet museum. The sloth bear in the zoo and the red pandas scratching their backs! Almost heartwarming...I have seen many a beautiful sights in the US. But the land of many souls is unparalled. Ma Durga on maha ashtami, when I refused to leave Darjeeling for Gangtok without finding a puja badi and praying to the Godess.
The green Rangeeth meeting the grey Teesta! Bamboo pole swings with cute little momo kids running around. Monks in Buddhist Monastries.. Unplanned buildings so many feet above sea level, tottering almost on the brink of human hope! And the climb to Tsonga lake and Nathula. UP UP and away. Chinese trucks which bought in , what else "chinese goods" and took back Parle G biscuits. Baba Mandir of the brave soldier nestled in the mountains. The waterfalls tearing away the soil. Bofors guns in the distance. Mad cap rajatshani army men driving crazy trucks.
India the land of unending chaos!
Suddenly the finite of life looks infinite. Suddenly it brings a smile on my face. Of Ma trying to gossip in Bangal with the roadside rajabadi dhaba wala. With Baba sleeping on my shoulder. Riji trying to grab my sunglasses. Of the friends who saw the pictures and shared their stories with me. Of Deepti who wanted to go but went to lakshwadeep instead.
Ah :) am a lucky girl. When you have seen the sun rising, the fog clearing bit by bit and the snow glinting in the far distance, borrowed windows haze and you see the Kachenjunga in Plano, Texas :)
