Morning Walk

I love walking alone..and i can walk for hours, and honestly i dont miss people.There are so many things one can learn while you are alone.I like my quiet times and these are the moments where life have thought some amazing lessons.

My morning walk...is not a routine that i follow out of willingness but it is a necessity.My bus stop is a ten minute walking distance from my house.This ten minute has the capacity to make or break my day.

Come enter my world...

I leave home most of the days at sharp 7:55 a.m.The minute i step out from my colony gates i know i am gonna walk into the insecure world.
My first character is the sweeper.He is the BMC sweeper, could be a graduate..gets paid well,according to the newspaper a salary of 8k per month.An old broom in his hand and a wooden plate to carry the waste..thats all he needs.So basic..yet he forms such an important part of our society.I always imagine what would be a day without him.His work has taught me one important lesson..Like cleaning the streets...cleaning of our heart is also necessary..Not cleaning the garbage once can cause unbearable stench...so does our heart..if no cleaning...it will be stinking rotten.
AS i move towards the turn...my second character enters.I call the "towel man".He sits near a telephone booth..with the towel tied to his waist and casually having a smoke.He seems a little lost, i never had the guts to speak to him..and i dont think i will ever muster courage to talk to him.When i see him, the picture that comes to my mind is of a stuffed cupboard.From outside it looks so peaceful but when u open it the piled clothes just keeps falling out.Then one day i realised...isnt it the same with everyone...doesnt everyone have hidden skeltons in the closet.

50 metres ahead..i meet my next character...the Lepers..There are two of them and they take turns in begging.Leprosy is a social stigma in India and the chances of these two belonging to some affluent families in the village is a high possibilty.Initially when i had just started with this exercise..a look at them and my heart would flinch in distress.I used to try ways to just get talking with them..but never had the courage to do so..When i finally mustered some courage and decided to build a rapport with them,they disappeared for full 3 months.They did appear after that....but my heart had turned cold by then.It didnt flinch anymore, it didnt cry anymore..It just shrugs at them.They are my conscience meter's which has touched a new low...Its doesnt climb upwards..it just stopped working.

Then my "tall guy"..He without an exaggeration is 6 feet 8 inches tall...and nebody walking on the road will give him "dekko".I am so sure everyday..in the evening when he reaches home he must be cursing himself and God for his height.I had asked a friend of mine..why does God give some people so much suffering..and pat came the reply,"Because God knows that he can bear it".The wisdom of my colleague startled me and put me into thought for a long time.And I realised what a blessing it is to be under trials...he..God himself moulds you.You know what i want to do the next time i see this guy...i want to run across the road and tell him..God knows all your pain..and he will deliver you...

Next on my list is "the saint of crows".This man is an inspiration and his deed is a nuisance for me.Inspiration because every morning religiously at 8 a.m he comes and scatters grains for the birds.Come rain,come sunshine he is there at that time and also the crows in Worli..:-)
Nuiscance because the crows of Worli seems to have some enmity with me...Some old brawl between us...which is the primary reason of revenge.They always attack..i seem to be their favorite target...they peck me often and if they arent pecking me..they scare me with their fights...But beyond all this..It is a very humbling sight to watch...People do care about so many things...Like the Bible says " not a sparrow will fall down to the ground without my knowledge".He knows their needs too..
Someone had said that If you can touch one soul...u can bring in an revolution.

I dont know anyone of them,yet they are not strangers.

I reach my bus stop ,far away i can see the blue colored company bus.Hmmm...its a new day...
Getting on to the bus I enter into a different world altogether...People with very sleek gadgets, earphones glued on to their ears....forlorn faces.. All strangers!!!

After seeing them..i start wondering..and start questioning my best friend...Did i take the wrong bus God!!!!