Saturday, November 14, 2009

கனா, A dream. Forever!!

வானவில் பொறாமை கொண்டது
அவள் வண்ணம் பார்த்து.
தொப்பைப் பழம் சுழன்று விழுந்தது
அவள் கன்னம் பார்த்து.
பட்டுப்பூச்சிக்கு இதமளிக்கும்
அவள் பூப் புன்னகை.
அழகிய இயற்கை தான் அதற்கே
அவள் பெருமை சேர்ப்பாள்.
இந்தப் பாமரனுக்கோ
அவள் என்றென்றும் கனா.

It was the last day of my short business trip to Calcutta. The ten days had paced up wonderfully to end with such drama. It was a hectic day at work. Continuous calls to colleagues working far, incessant reporting to managers on the status of tasks completed, uninterrupted fixing of bugs with our client's users. That was throughout the morning. It was still unclear if I had to stay for one more day though I had my ticket booked.

More conference calls on status, more convincing of the client, more assurances that work will be completed on time. It had me on my toes till lunch. Lunch over. Am I leaving? I have to leave at two to the guest house, fetch my bags, hire a taxi and leave for the airport - a journey of one and a half hours. The flight is at 5.15. Had to be there latest by a quarter to five. Still undecided.

After a couple of mails from my bosses, the decision's made. I can leave. It's 3.05. Taxi. 3.25 Guest house. 3.30 Start from GH. Deal with the driver - reach airport on time and he gets Rs. 100 more than the meter fare. Heavy traffic. One of the most thickly populated cities. I remembered. And what an oppurtunity to do it!!

More calls. During the travel. What else has to be done? Number of pending tasks. When do we plan to complete it? Can't hear properly. Very noisy traffic. Friday muezzin's prayers on. Hawkish street vendors. Honking lorry drivers. Not-in-line autorickshaw czars. Creaking taxi seat. Rickety steel frames. Highly uneven roads.

Airport 4.35. A run to collect the ticket. Baggage screening. Check-in. Security check. My pulse is still racing. Tone is still high. And still breathing hard. On the stairs to the flight. The last passenger to board. Heart rate is slowing down. I've located my seat. Wiped my sweat away. Kept all things in the overhead bin. And in my seat. Seat belt is fastened. Aircraft leaves the hangar. Gentle pace towards the runway. My heart is pacing down. Nerves are calmer. Pulse is almost normal. Last turn before the runway. Then a stop. Pilots wait for clearance to take-off.

The lights are off. Absolute silence. My head falls back on the headrest. My eyes close. One long heavy breath. The burden of a hectic day - behind me. Peace!! No traffic. No noise. No calls. My mind is free. Clear. A dark background.
Light!! Her face. The lissome lassie I'd met. The colour. The serenity. The shy smile. The beauty. A moment. A dream. Forever.

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