Transition

A FACE IN THE CROWD

The day started like any other…the sun shining through the window asking me to wake up. And yet, it was not just any other day. There was a calm about it. The all too familiar noise of vehicles vrooming past with their horns blasting was missing. It was so quiet and serene that the sounds of birds chirping could actually be heard even in the concrete jungle of the city. Ah! Then as I realized the fact that it was a Sunday, a smile surfaced by itself on my lips and I pulled the covers more closely over myself. It was a day of rest, no worry of reaching office before my big boss. There was also the added attraction of the Republic Day falling on the very next day. The promise of another holiday (What a pity! That’s what days of national importance mean to us now-‘yet another holiday’) meant the absence of ‘Monday Morning Blues’ too. I got up only after being convinced of having had my rightful share of sleep and lazy doing nothings. My roommates and I had a hearty breakfast – thanks to previous night’s leftovers, a homely lunch and then decided it was time for a taste of the out-doors. After thinking and talking and listening and searching, we decided upon a visit to the Lal Bagh which was hosting a horticultural show. It was strange that after staying together for almost a year in the ‘Garden City’, we had never been to this garden together. We reached our destination and at once started the usual laments of why we had not thought of this wonderful idea earlier and the like. Then was it that we remembered Dr. Spencer Johnson’s ‘The Present’ which two of us had been reading that very morning. We decided to make the most of what we had at that moment rather than spoil the fun brooding over what had not been. The flowers on show were a treat to the eyes and we enjoyed shooting them with our camera lens too. But the crowd was not too conducive to getting smooth shots. The three of us took turns in front of and behind the lens when a similar group of three caught my attention. They spoke the same language as us and seemed to prefer the same locations for their pictures. One of those faces, I noticed in particular and I could not stop myself from approaching them in spite of a professional photographer standing near us when we wanted someone to click the three of us together. I did the same for them with their camera and that was it. Three minutes later, at a different exhibit, the owner of the face that had caught my imagination flowing politely asked if we needed another shot taken. I said “No” as I was thinking of a solo at that place which we could shoot among ourselves. We came out of the show, but I found myself looking around, hoping for a glimpse of that face, wondering if my ‘No’ had sounded rude, wondering if we should have stayed longer or talked more, wondering if we should have introduced ourselves, wondering…and still wondering…if I would ever again see that face in the crowd. It was a face I had seen before in my mind’s eye. It struck a familiar cord when I first saw it in flesh and blood. It still remains. The day ended…In reality, it is ending. The hands of the clock show 11 pm. Both my friends are already asleep tired after the long day. And myself, fresh after a warm bath sitting here and putting my thoughts into words…dreaming happily of the holiday tomorrow…hoping to see that face again some day…. the face in the crowd which had awakened the spirit in me once again…. the face in the crowd which had made me feel like a teenager…. underlining the fact that even in the mad rush of city life and work we still have something of ourselves remaining deep within us. It is up to us to let it surface at least once in a while….may be on holidays like this And before I sign off, a word to ‘the face in the crowd’ if he reads this and identifies himself---“Thank you for making me rediscover myself” Pia...