Sam, Indu, Krissh and I met through a carpool app. We carpool to work. Our office hours & location is the same. We work in a different
organization but in the same business park. It’s been almost two years since we are
pooling.
I have noticed, with every passing year Mumbai traffic is
becoming bad to worse, and so is the work pressure. It competes with the
increasing Mumbai traffic.
To beat the traffic we leave before traffic wakes up. But
evenings are….. I have to mention about monsoon. Monsoons bring relief from
the rising temperature but at the same time, it terrorizes us. Flooding, road
closure and kilometers of jams. Sometimes I feel I spend my precious time
in the traffic. And rest of the time I think I live my life in
Mumbai traffic. Luckily, KIS (Krish, Indu, and Sam) keeps me entertained
and going. I find my work-life balance in Mumbai traffic.
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| Image courtesy Pixabay |
I work till 6 pm so does KIS. My office environment is
vibrant and demanding. Thanks to our corporate communications team who help us
deal with work pressure. They are super enthusiastic, innovative and full of ideas.
Today we were asked to wear pink or red. The work floor looked like a beautiful
rose garden. On our desk was a blank card. We had to write a message. The theme was
environment .i.e. our mother nature. We were given 10 mins to write. I am not a
natural at it. Ten minutes without the help of goggle was an impossible task
for me. So I didn’t think hard. I wrote:
You are. Hence I am. You are
my friend & companion.
You are loved and you too
shower love – the sun, rain, stars & moon.
With you I am. I am because
you are.
Thank you Mother Nature.
The day passed well and just before the closing, I was
declared as the winner. My message was described as thoughtful, intense and written
from the bottom of my heart. I was very happy, after many years I had won.
Krish was leaving the office at 6:30, I decided to wait. Sam
& Preet couldn’t join, one had a date and another had a teleconference.
Krish was waiting in the car at the pickup
point. He looked surprised. He looked sad. The moment I sat in the car he asked, “Where is your date?” My witty reply was, “With me!” He looked at the lovely roses and the gift bag, his eyebrows raised and stayed there for a while, before they relaxed. Oh! Now, I could connect dots – roses, gift, and date. Simple logic on Valentine’s day.
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| Image courtesy Pixabay |
Once I became comfortable in the car, I opened the gift box
and shared the chocolates, appreciated the gift and smiled without reason. I was
childlike happy.
Krish hesitantly asked, “what's up….. roses & gift? Finally
found….love of your life?” I burst out laughing. After a few minutes, I narrated the
sequence of events that made me so happy. All excited Krish asked me to recite
my award-winning message. So here I was, in the middle of traffic jam reading
the card like an accomplished poet.
You are
Hence, I am
You are my friend & companion
You are loved
& you too shower love – sun,
rain, stars, and moon
With you I am
I am because you are
Love Radha, always!
Suddenly silence engulfed us. We moved through streets,
heavy traffic, and highway for almost two hours, without uttering a single
word.
At my drop point, just before stepping out of the car, we
both hurriedly said in unison, “ Happy Valentine’s Day” and murmured in unison “I
Love you”.
Our eyes met before I shut the door. We hesitantly smiled
and I quickly moved towards the footpath. At that very moment, I realized…
I truly spend my precious time
in Mumbai’s traffic.
I live my life in Mumbai
traffic.
With the one I love, my friend my companion in sun and rains
with starts and moon. With him I am
I am because he is…..
My social media status since then is #LoveMumbaiTraffic
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