Little Things...

Mornings in Mumbai, though not really cold but are dark. In this darkness, the street lights are consorting with the moon, which is yet to set, to spread the light.

There is enough traffic on the road to refer this time of the day as ‘peak hours’.

The watch on your wrist seems to be deceiving as it shows 6.30 am.

Just 6.30 am and yet another ‘busy’ day in the life of ‘Mumbaikars’ has already begun.

Amidst the plethora of auto rickshaws, school buses and milk vans as you hurriedly make your way towards your bus stop (that place, where you will meet your daily commuting agent, the company bus which will further take you to your workplace), you come across another bus stop where the kids are waiting along with either of their parents for the school buses.

It is here you overhear a voice,

“आई, आज bus आलीच नाही पहिजे...”

(“Mother, I wish, the bus should not come today”)

Unable to resist your smile, you look in the direction of the voice, the little boy must not be more than six-seven years of age. This reminds you of the famous Marathi nursery rhyme, “सांग सांग भोलानाथ, पाउस पडेल काय?” (where the kids pray to the Lord Shiva, to tell them if it would rain so that they will get a holiday from school) But, it isn’t monsoon and the sky shows no signs of rains so the school kid can only pray that the bus shouldn’t come.

Somewhere in your mind you pray to the God that the little boy’s wish should come true.

Somewhere in your mind, the song, “सांग भोलानाथ, पाऊस पडेल काय?” keeps playing and you realise that you have reached your bus stop.

“Hi, Good Morning... what’s up?” One of your colleagues who has already reached the bus stop greets you.

“You know what?

“आज bus आलीच नाही पहिजे...”

You reply spontaneously.