“Get up…Getup…!! My alarm sang as I saw the beautiful sun rise with my half-closed eyes, still wanting to hug the soft pillows on the bed. A few turns on the bed, and here I am, standing to go for a jog… I, with my all-time and indispensable iPod, ran out of my villa, as if the sea ahead was only waiting to see me and hug me with a cool breeze! After half an hour of jogging, I went to my favourite corner, a grey bench that was often splashed with waves when the tides were high. Solitude sometimes needs to be grasped! Sitting on this bench was a habit that, if not followed, would not complete my morning workout. There was no better option to talk with oneself than this! Questions like how the day would be ahead and what would actually be the priorities—as if the entire itinerary was supposed to be planned on this bench alone! And here I was, ready and packed with all my thoughts and plans, to simply go back and pour them one by one into a basket.
As I went back, my mother-in-law was sitting in front of her most valuable possession. Her TV! She listened to live bhajans from temples. I listened, hummed a few lines, stepped into the living room with a glass of juice, and met my husband. Knocking on the wall of his daily newspaper or snatching the same when my call was unanswered was a routine thing. I opened my mouth to discuss what I had thought on the grey bench. Peeping through his half-bent newspaper, he greeted me with his sweet smile and listened endlessly to the downpour of my thoughts. The clock ticked 9. It was time to call Raghu Bhaiya, our driver, and let him know whether he had to come to drop me off at my office or if it would be a work from home day. It all depended on my husband’s mood, whether he planned to attend his office or stay at home. As he had a meeting with some foreign collaborators, I too made up my mind to set up my office.
Wednesday was my pink day. To dress up in lavender (my favourite colour), my wardrobe is divided into four sections. As I came from the restroom, my fingers ran through those four sections and hit a lavender saree with floral designs spread across. My handbag, my mobile, my personal diary—all were checked, and I was ready to join my husband in the car, who would drop me off at the office on his way. All those routine traffic jams gave me some more time to continue the conversation left incomplete in the morning.
The car dropped me near the office gate. I met Ramu Bhaiya, the security guard, who, as usual, was ready with the prasad he bought for me at the temple. The next tete-a-tete was with Uma Aunty, who was the caretaker of my office garden. She took me through the fragrant garden. Roses, lilies, chrysanthemums, and hollyhocks bloomed in the entire vicinity. Promising Umabai to see her in the evening, I entered the office.
I kept my belongings in my personal cupboard and seated myself on the chair. Ramu bhaiya had informed the pantry about my visit, and a cup of hot Costa hazelnut cappuccino (the heavenly coffee I adored!) and some cookies were waiting for me on my table.
I could not believe how few ho
Attending a conference with my team after lunch was quite hectic, but I managed to finish it by 5 p.m. It was time to hit the office gym and meet my personal dietician. All this was not something I was forced to do, but to stay fit and eat healthy was my family’s motto!
Raghu Bhaiya, waiting for me to come, as usual, rubbed the rear mirror of my sweet Beatle as if the entire world were that Beatle only! I greeted him with a smile, and he understood the smile. He looked in the mirror and then smiled again. Another surprise was to find my husband inside the car, which was a rare scenario where I had to wait no less than 10 minutes each day in front of his office.
I was happy as it was a weekend, and as planned, we had to meet an interior designer for the renovation of our house. The guys selected were not only professionals but also had a creative bent of mind and youthful imagination. After a rich dinner, we had a few things left to be discussed, which were slotted during the post-dinner walk.
As we moved and planned our points of discussion with the designer for the next day, the conclusion (though discussed after a lot of ifs and buts) was to have an extra window in our bedroom that would be sea and sun facing. aah!! No matter what the cost, facing the sun and the sea was a must. The reason for this deliberateness and, in part, dominance was that I was very allergic to any alarm clock that would ring in the morning. Actually, I felt someone was battering your calm sleep with an unwelcome or uninvited note: GET UP—GET—UP—GET—UP
Oh !! My god!! What was that? My alarm was just ringing GET UP..GET—UP It was 10 a.m., 5 missed calls, and 2 SMS from my inhuman boss! I ran to get ready… My cab had already left, and the cook was gone. Hubby had already left with a message on the answering machine to at least eat before leaving. There was no time for that. I was again late as I hired a paid cab. I sat with a rushing mind just to realise and feel the ray of hope! My dream is to do away with that alarm and actually live and feel life….A ray of hope was still there – to live and believe!
