Winter Wonderland

 

 

At 12 noon, a whiff of pleasant breeze titillating bright winter blooms.... blades of grass trying to drink up all the sunshine they can after waking up from a chilly night... indeed, the warm winter afternoons are poetic in their own right. One is reminded of Gulzar’s “Jado ki narm dhoop me, chhat par pade hue... Dil dhoondta...” But as the years pass by, the fursat ke pal become elusive and the allure of narm dhoop also wanes, only its memories settle in some small corner of the heart. December is the month of marriage functions, Christmas, New Year’s eve, holidays, reunions, get-togethers and more. And why not, soft winters are always better than the sweltering summers. But this is just the commercial aspect of this enchanting time of the year.

 

At the core, winters should still be all about the ‘narm dhoop’. Talking of reunions, they have become a norm in December-January, much to suit the travel schedules of those now settled abroad. A school/college reunion is not just a casual “Let’s catch up” thing with your regular friends. It is revisiting the days of your life, just a mention of which instantly puts a smile on your face. Memories of the bunked lectures and movies watched from the front row, of the chowmein shared by five pals from one plate and of the birthday cake scraped off a friend’s face. Memories of those silly fights and serious crushes now fill your heart with a longing for more. We graduated to ‘better things’ in life. Rickety front row seats of the modest theaters made way for fancy recliners of sophisticated cinema halls. Interestingly, the ticket prices pinch the wallet just the same. Somewhere down the line, the roadside eateries suddenly became ‘unhygienic’ and the stuff they sell ‘unhealthy’. But the urge to share a hot plate of poha at a roadside tapri in the company of friends and inane conversations remains the same.

 

e may change but the beauty of winter remains the same. You may find it in gathering around a bonfire on a biting cold night and or feel it while soaking in the tender rays of the Sun. It can also be discovered in a steaming hot cup of tea. Afterall, if anything accentuates the allure of the good old ‘chai’ after a sodden rainy day, it is a shivering winter night. There is beauty in the blooms and also in the birds filling courtyards and balconies with chirp and twitter. Winter enchants when every breath and gasp floats away like a cloud in the gelid air and romanticism takes over. But there’s a spoiler too. Throw in a cyclone and this winter charm wanes. Not for long, one prays. Here’s hoping that the magic returns soon and tucks us all in some special brumal moments. n