It’s almost Christmas and the New Year’s a few days away. High hopes all around; people are beyond nervous anticipation— 2017 should be better.
I’m no different. It hasn’t been the best year. But it hasn’t been the worst year either. It’s been stormy, wet, and dull. But I’m expecting the sun to rise up and the flowers to bloom.
After how this year turned out, it looks like 2017 couldn’t get worse. I wouldn’t put anything past chance, though. We still have fifteen days for the year to wrap up and anything could happen.
But no matter how the rest of the month goes, we’ll have a new beginning in a few days. And to celebrate, I want to rewind a year to a photo I took on the 1st of January 2016.
When I took the photo, I had no idea how the year would unfold. And yet, I enjoyed a moment of solace with a sunrise and a new horizon. Perhaps 2017 would turn out better.
Whether it had been a long day at work or a longer day with no work, there’s one thing that always calms my nerves. It’s coffee, of course.
But when you’re at the Lé Café in Pondicherry, the coffee arrives just as the sun begins to rise. Now that’s more than relaxing. It’s divine peace.
November’s just gone by and December’s just stopped by. It is the holiday season; we eat a lot and talk a lot, without ever a mention of our weights. It’s the time of colder nights, boozy days, and guilt-free indulgence.
Nothing’s more indulging than some good ol’ chocolate. Besides, it’s not this time of the year without it.
Magic happens when you’re not looking. It gets you unawares and leaves you craving more. I’ve had a few magical moments myself, and the most profound of them all is when I stood at the foot of a near-frozen lake with snowflakes falling on my hand. It was the Tsomgo Lake in Gangtok.
Nothing was unexpected at that moment, but until I stood there, I never expected to get out of the vehicle and experience the snowflakes. Where I live, it’s sunny round the year, and that day was the first time I saw snow. The sight of the snow-capped mountains reflecting on the lake sent shivers down my spine that had nothing to do with the cold. That’s the kind of magic I’d give anything to witness again.
The Chaos Within 