A Beginner's Mind

It was an interesting Saturday afternoon. Two of my friends joined in to shower mercy on our overheated souls. Outside, the afternoon Sun was baking everything unsheltered. I wondered - is this Bangalore? This used to be a garden city. This used to be a pub city as well - the trees are gone now and so have the dance floors, the powers to be want us to sip our drinks quietly till 11PM without shaking a leg & then rush back home to savor the night alone. Or with air conditioners. The original inhabitants of this overflowing cosmo tell me that even fans were a rarity in mid 90s & people were a lot more patient. There were afternoon picnics in parks, there were lakes as well. Now the only constant in this city is the giant traffic monster; growling, snarling & controlling all the educated, cosmopolitan , well travelled & supposedly intelligent assembly line workers - whose only challenge is to resist honking & save their new overpriced cars from getting dents. Patienc

The bright orange streetlight showered on the bus stop. It was a very cold night. The last bus was at 10:30. Arjun waited at the bus stop staring at his watch, then at the halo the streetlight made, then towards the left side of the main road then to the right at the fading twinkling lights of the vehicles. Right across him was an ATM the only light on the other side of the road. Behind him was an IT park - brightly illuminated. Then he looked at the sky, the stars were dimmer than usual. He wondered why, as today was a clear night. The fog makes it difficult to see things clearly. His watch showed 10:00. Only half an hour more, Arjun thought. He was early today. Usually he just makes it in time for the last bus. He knew he worked very hard.  Last few months had been especially tiring. There was a major project delivery. You know how it is in the service industry. Arjun was at his desk at 9 AM and took only two small breaks in between. One for lunch, other for a stroll around th