It is 7.15 in the morning. I have rushed through the morning chores and my morning tea and am standing now at the Andheri bus stop waiting for the AC bus that will take me to the town for my dentist's appointment. As any diehard Mumbaikar knows, town is the area south of Worli. Rest of the city- which means 80% of it- is disdainfully described as suburb by them.
As I wait alone, I become aware of the morning sounds of the city. I hear the 'kuhoo kuhoo' of a solitary cuckcoo amidst the jarring 'caw-caw's of several crows. And the muttering sounds of the pigeons who are being fed grains by an old man. A stray dog shakes itself from sleep and wanders towards the garbage dump looking for his morning meal. He is accosted by another dog there and they indulge in some friendly fighting over the ownership of the garbage dump. A milkman passes by on his bicycle, his milk cans jangling loudly. He stops for a moment and pours half a cup of milk in a partially broken saucer for a little brown and white striped cat sitting forlornly beside it.
A middle-aged couple join me , waiting for the same bus. They are talking to each other in low tones. Another man is puffing furiously at his ciggerate a few feet away, trying to finish it before he alights on the bus which is now visible at distance.
The bus stops and take us in and just before it leaves, a girl comes running towards it, her hair and scarf flying in the air. The conductor opens the door for her and she flops on one of the front seats. The bus picks some more passengers on the next few stops.
The passengers are all looking settled in now for an hour and quarter of the travel time it would take us to reach town. A man has opened his newspaper to read. Another one is flipping through a magazine. An executive looking youngman has opened his laptop and is looking at it with frowned concentration. A uniformed school boy has opened his notebook and is trying to memorize something which he would be expected to regurgiate after an hour in the school examination. The middle aged man has closed his eyes and is dozing peacefully while his wife is looking out of the window, seeing the sights of the city. Two teenaged girls are chatting and giggling in the back seat. Another one is talking softly in her mobile phone, smiling every few moments. A woman has opened a thick novel and is absorbed in it, seemingly oblivous of her surroundings. A youngman has put on earphones and is listening to music. The girl- that of flying hair and scarf- has opened a little box and is having fruits, obviously her breakfast.
A typical morning has begun. I look at my fellow passengers and wonder whether it is'nt the best part of their day... a time when nothing bad has happened so far and a whole day full of promise is ahead of them. I rest my head on the backrest, close my eyes and doze off thinking of pleasant thoughts...thoughts of my children who would be starting their day in more or less same way in faraway lands. I guess there is a little smile on my face too...
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