Boating in Cochin

I once visited Cochin during school. It was a hazy three-day trip of which I only recall hot days and cold nights.

Oh, and the boat ride.

Like most tourists in Kerala, we took a boat ride too. And the best part of it is that we had to walk through numerous boats to get to the one we’d ride in. We stepped onto the first boat in the lake, and from there onto another, and another, and then another. After walking through about 6 or 7 boats, our teacher called out saying we had found our boat at last.

It was the largest mass of wood I had seen that floated on water. And on it was a hood-like structure that kept the rain and sun away. As soon as we embarked the boat, it began to rain. We filed into the “hood,” and saw our jaws drop. There were about 50 chairs placed around the interior of the boat, with glass windows to make us feel like an island.

A little adventurous, I stepped out of the hood and onto the dock. There were some wooden poles to hold on to, and the cold monsoon breeze kissed my face. I peered down from the boat, to see clear water in some places, and muddy patches in some other places. Little islands of seaweed flowed here and there, breaking the vast, rippling water.

And as our boat thrust forward, concentrated salt water gushed from the boat’s edges like swimmers racing in opposite directions.

I leaned in with my camera to get a better shot at the flowing water when another, much smaller boat made its way toward us. Two men stood on that boat, one of them handling the sail while the other blew his shrill whistle signalling to our guide.

They seemed to me like challengers daring us to race them. And I was all game before I saw the print on the boat: Coast Guard.

Huh?

We heard it later: According to government rules, every passenger on the boat should have a life jacket, and none of us adhered. We were just a bunch of over-excited school kids being kids. Besides, what’s the point of taking “security measures” when you’re at the mercy of nature?

Another Day

Girls walked in clusters, their red skirts swirling in the soft breeze. He watched them as they went into the opposite building. They seemed flustered, steaks of hair escaping from their braids. They rushed on, late for their classes.

Boys in blue shirts stood under the great big banyan tree. Some of them peered at books, some of them at the girls, while a couple of boys chased after the basketball that had run away from the court.

Everywhere he turned, he saw once-white shoes and energetic children. The pond in the distance rippled as the wind swept yellowing leaves into it.

The sun showered its love for the earth, despite the mid-monsoon week. The catering truck whizzed into view. Just looking at the closed vehicle gave him hunger pangs. He could almost smell the sausages and minced meat burgers within it. His stomach growled as the lorry passed his eyes. There was still a long time left for the lunch break.

Out of nowhere, a stern voice shattered his thoughts. “What the hell are you doing boy?” He turned to see his Math teacher towering over him, her mascara magnified under her spectacles.

“If you can’t concentrate when I’m talking, get out!”

It took her that long to free him.

Game Time

He trudged towards me

in too big a shoe and tee

he stopped next to my chair

and looked at my tinted hair.

It was in a spur of the moment

my character needed adornment

And with his black beetle eyes

and tiny lips still showing signs

of the meal he had a while ago

he frowned like it’s embargo.

Then with hands on his hips

and a stern look over specs​

“Stop playing and go for dinner!”

ordered my four-year-old brother.

A Closer Look

details

I had read fiction where the hero would lie on soft green moss after a long tired day of battle. I had even seen a lot of moss, sure. But I never thought them beautiful. How could something that grew in dark and damp clusters look nice?

But then I went to Thekkady, Kerala. I was roaming around in the Periyar Tiger Reserve when I saw the true beauty in moss. It was the first time I had seen a sheen of green I couldn’t look away from. I had to get a closer look. And a photo. Because I do that now.

Looks Say Naught

Her gaze was as cavern black

so dark I could barely see

past those sockets.

It seemed hollow

cold,

echoing, unforgiving.

Her touch was as cubes of ice

sending bouts of shivers

down to my spine.

Transcending to me

vague,

chilly, and nothing.

Her smile was empty as a cup

that had lost all within

and its hope.

Her lips parted

forced,

small, and unfeeling.

Her heart was as ocean deep

going further than ever

to cherish her love.

Though none knew it,

hidden,

living, and pumping.