Every morning, the kabhi shehed shehed of my office (no! not in a romantic way! not in the least!), brings me a cup of "Good Morning Puja! Ye aapke liye. Na nahi karne ka. Khaas aapke liye banaake laaya." (Still not a blossoming romance, you pretend cynics, greedily waiting to lap up the first signs of a love story!)
The glass full of kesar milk I had, before leaving home, churns my insides. I look at his hopeful smile. Oh For Pete's sake, you buggers! I am like his daughter and there is definitely no cheeni kum in my coffee! Let me get on with the so-not-a-love-story! So....back to his INNOCENTLY hopeful smile. I look at the tray in his hands. My taste buds wince at the anticipation of the sweetness, as I take a cup and thank him with a smile.
With each painstaking gulp of morning (inching towards noon), I pat my own back for being such a kind person. After all, the kabhi shehed shehed of my office brings me a cup full of morning every day, and I take it. Knowing I am going to hate it, I gulp, just to not disappoint that hopeful smile. So nice I am!
As the day wears on, the kabhi neem neem of my office surround me, swoop down on me, pounce on me and demand their work. I find myself scampering around my office, jabbing away frantically at the keyboard, missing lunch more often than not and being pulled into the dreaded katghara for repeated interrogation. He passes by occasionally then, with a joke or two. This is when I admire
that man with his hopeful smile, holding out his ever-welcoming tray to me. I long for those few relaxed moments when my only struggle is to empty a cup of extra sweet morning.
Life humbles you in so many different ways every day! I take back that pat on my back. I need to see that smile every day. I need to struggle through the generous serving of sugar in my cup. I need to feel that I am such a nice person for not breaking his heart. So do a lot of the others here and in every other place.
And so goes he to every table, with the same ready smile, the same coaxing tray, letting every person do him a favour, filling a little extra sugar in every cup to get through the stings of the bland day ahead. I might be a nice person for those two seconds, but that man is a true man of gold.
It's sad! When the whole world is on your case pounding their fists and demanding "What's the story???", that's when I remember and am grateful for my morning glory...Well, there's a last gulp left. Here's a toast - to My Morning Glory! Who is yours?
No comments:
Post a Comment