Incomplete Sunrise

I woke up early today morning and hoped to see a sunrise after what seemed like an eternity. For some reason, I did not get to see a 'proper' sunrise. But what I got to see was what is in the picture below. Somehow, I think this was as beautiful, if not more than seeing a proper 'sunrise'.

Diagonal

Symmetry in asymmetry.

Melting Crossing

Incomplete Sounds

Incomprehensible screeches
Of children playing
Muffle the humming
Of the machine
In the background
The gushing drain
Gurgles a symphony
In the meantime

Flashback

As he stepped into the house, for the last time in his life, he felt like he was coming home.

Only, he was not. He was leaving. And the last memories of the house were going to stay with him. Especially the smell.

The smell he could never forget, having grown up with it. It was the familiar smell of home. It was the mixture of the smells of all the things that were at home. And this mix was the unique mix that could not be replicated anywhere else, no matter how hard he tried. And he had tried. He had tried to get the smell in every home he had lived in over the past years. But somehow he could not get it. And when he went back home, the first thing that he longed for was that smell.

He drew a deep breath as he entered the home for the last time, taking it all in. And then a loud sigh. Followed by the breeze bringing in the wind. And getting mixed with the smell.

* * *

His transformation was complete.

Well, as complete as he might have wanted it to be. Years ago.

It had been many years of living away from her. It had changed him. And when he looked back at all that had happened and how he had moved from one place to another. One life to another. Restarting, again and again. Each new life, a better life. Each new life, further away from her.

And this made them grow even closer.

You don't

When you are dealing with the unknown, how do you know whether what you are doing is right or wrong?

Blue vs. Blue

Light slanting through the same old make-shift cafe. But this time, a different scene. This time a tale of opposites, a tale of blue vs. blue. Back to Back.



I found this picture simple yet fascinating. So many opposites to observe, think and write about. But I thought that I’d let the picture speak for itself. For now.

Thoughts and observations invited, of course.

Another airport, early in the morning ...

The dawn breaks and the light slants through the make-shift cafe. The lights are not needed but they are on. The sun can do the trick alone. Regulations do not take into account, the sun in the cafe, in the corner, of the airport. Ugly green wedding chairs on flimsy cheap small tables. Brands screaming out, waiting to be touched, to be picked up. A ketchup bottle, stained red on a red background. The smell of coffee lingers in the air.



The final call is announced. The sprawling lounge, clean as a whistle, gives the impression of being a passage to another world. The yellow-on-black sign screams out the gate numbers. And I walk on. Through the passage. To another world.



The plane, connected, awaits. Humming in anticipation. Its frowning eyes staring you in the face. Reprimanding you for being one of the last ones to enter. The trip to the Sinking City has drawn to a close. Clear skies beckon.

Dinner and a view

... in the Sinking City, to end the day!

Sinking City

"The city is reportedly sinking at a rate of 5cm (2in) every year, but there's too much sanùk (a peculiarly local concept of fun) going on for that to get anyone down. It's worth putting up with the coronary-inducing traffic jams, pollution, annual floods and sticky weather to experience the contrasts of the city: glass and steel buildings shaped like cartoon robots standing next to glittering temple spires; wreaths of jasmine flowers dangling from the rear-view mirrors of buses and taxis; shaven-headed, orange-robed monks walking barefoot along the street beneath a bank of giant Sony screens blasting MTV Asia."