"What company would I,
a solitary wanderer, have
when I decide to travel
the length and breadth of the world?
The day is the best for exploration
while night is the time for rest.
What would I,
a solitary wanderer, do
when my travel begins in the night?
When darkness engulfs the earth,
taking light away from lives.
What's the point in travelling then?"
With questions such
in the mind,
I embarked on a night journey,
very much disappointed
there was no beauty to behold.
But recline did I on my seat;
open did I the bus' window;
look up did I at the sky;
fly did my heart away from me.
I felt the same fascination
that made Mozart say,
"Twinkle, twinkle little star"
and made him wonder what it was.
I realized the beauty of the word
'vinmeen' -
like a school of fish swimming in the sea
stars infinite glittered on the vast sky.
With whatever knowledge I have -
a drop of water in a mighty ocean -
I tried to identify constellations.
How do I describe them?
The traditional Tamil 'kolam' taken higher
or
God's way of playing 'connect the dots'?
When I could figure out nothing
in the mad cluster of super hot balls of gases,
Orion appeared and gave me relief -
the kind a mother gets
on finding her lost kid in a fair.
What extent of awe strikes
when you see in person
what you once beheld in
just pictures and videos!
I was, like a madman,
laughing to myself.
The strong gust of wind
threatened to expose
my 'recession' to my neighbour,
the constant upward curve of my mouth
threatened to expose my madness.
But did I give a damn?
Or have I ever?
The beauty of day
lies in the clouds;
the beauty of night
lies in the stars.
Did the beauty of day
envy the beauty of night?
Why did the clouds,
with their foggy veil,
cover the stars?
Wow! Nature has emotions too!
And when the overdose of ecstasy,
borne out of constant stargazing, kicked in,
I wanted to share it with someone.
Who else is the ideal choice
other than the one who's a star's namesake herself?
A star in her own right!
How I wished
she were with me then
and were creating 'heavenly' shapes
like John Nash and Alicia did!
I experienced a brief burst
of love and hope.
My mind wandered
into the philosophical realm too.
I was beginning to understand
what 'contemplating the universe'
really means.
