THE winter is here. There is a chill in the air. The icy hand of the season is touching all souls to let them experience the thrills of a good shiver. Very generously, it has taken away the last remnants of the hot, sultry weather. And now on the offer is a choice – to either let the chill, which envelopes the world, set in hearts, minds and souls or let human endeavors bring in the much-required warmth. It is not an easy task, most certainly not! If one gives it a serious thought, one will, in fact, realise how massively difficult it is. For, it takes a mammoth effort actually to accomplish it. And looking at the humongous numbers of people who fail in achieving it, any success is a cause to celebrate. So, kudos to all of them who do succeed in this gigantic task, who demonstrate the formidable courage and will to attempt the unimaginable and who succeed in achieving the unthinkable - pushing off the very cozy caresses of the warm blanket in the early morning chill and get out of the bed! With many failures and some successes, I do have days to pat myself on my success at demonstrating formidable courage and achieving the unthinkable.

 

 Just like that  

 

My courage, though exemplary, has to be aided with the shrill noise of the alarm. For, getting up is a process, you see! One has to first shrug off the slumber before one can attempt to push off the blanket. I am training myself hard these days to achieve both. But as I said, it is a process. One may develop a false notion that the first and the second move in tandem. Ah! no. The second need not follow the first. And with winters these beautiful, the second very often does not have the heart to follow the first. You see, there is an in-between world on the threshold as one crosses the world of sweet slumber to move onto complete wakefulness. It is a rather cozy world where dreams meet reality, where stupor is yet to attain complete stupidity, where the joys of sweet sleep become known to the awakened. Here, the winter is still warm. It may just be a threshold but the crossover can be extremely difficult. The heaven-like situation inside the cozy blanket is too much a temptation to let go of. Within me, a tough battle between head and heart breaks out. The head has to win but heart often has its say.

 

There is something in the winter which demands that musings of the heart be entertained. And I give in. Who can defy the commands of the winter? Inside the warm blanket, the heart weaves many a story. What if life, too, relents its unyielding pace and stops for a catnap, enjoying the relaxing comfort of the warm blanket? What if time also takes time-out to snuggle in between us? What if my memory erases its ‘to-do’ list for a while? What if some fairy descends from heaven and brings to me my favourite ginger tea as I sip it basking in fresh morning’s tender sunrays? What if…? Uff! Just a little wafting and one hits the hard wall of reality. Neither has life relented its pace nor has time relaxed a bit, the to-do list is screaming and all of them tell this not-so-angelic sleepyhead to get going if she has to snatch time for any morning tea at all. Uff! Life!!! I always thought ‘morning blues’ was an awful word, an insult to lively mornings.

 

But getting out of the bed on winter mornings does bring a sentiment which is close to pale blue if not a complete blue! I say, “What is life if full of care, We have no time to snug and spare…!?! No time to snuggle underneath the covers And sleep till the mighty noon sun hovers…?” But rather than turning cold by blues how-so-ever pale, I set upon the huge human task of getting out of the bed. The room around is still dark. It, too, wants to preserve the best part of the winter mornings. Unlike me, it seems in no hurry to get disturbed. I disturb it. I push the curtains open letting the tender light of the first sunrays sprinkle in. The master of the house is lording comfortably, his slumber unaffected even by the explosion of the alarm, reminding me that winter mornings are not equally cruel on all species and that some are more equal than others. I hold no grudge. Ummh…! I don’t. Since life is less than benevolent on me letting me no time to chill, I’d rather take part in humane efforts to spread warmth. And It would be only human of me to start spreading warmth with my own self.

 

So, I make myself this very formidable cup of ginger tea. I fetch the newspapers and settle in the chair – me, my tea and the world. Aah! But the morning is still fresh, the cold still unrelenting, my sleepy-head still heady, and my blanket very inviting. In short, the charms of winter morning are far from over. So, though the clock is ticking, I convince myself that there is still some time to steal. I play my own fairy, taking my winter morning simmering in my tea cup and the world wrapped in newspapers and descend upon that wonderfully warm blanket. In here, winter is still warm.