After living life on the (super) fast lane for almost an year, there was this urge of slowing down & getting away from the time schedules, the daily routines & grinds. I needed break free of all this & wanted to live life in the slow motion, without any pressure, no deadlines to remember, nothing to rush for. I wanted to have time at my will so that i could live my days , my way.
That’s exactly what I did. Packed the family bags, coaxed & cajoled the “Oh So Reluctant Hubby” & sped off to the most sought after, the most loved , sleepy hamlet of Kasauli.
I was anticipating life in awesome solitude, watching butterflies & birds, clicking away beautiful pictures of the hills & nature ,which I hardly get to do in Delhi. Walking up the market, trekking to Manki point or just lazing around, soaking up the sunshine, hanging out in the small Tibetan shops buying trinkets or just lying in my bed in the hotel watching TV or just doing nothing.
Will this heat end? The weather was kind of tropical, humid. I really can’t remember the last visit when it had rained because , the rains have been scarce but Kasauli in during rains is heavenly.
I think Someone up there really heard me this time , because by the time we reached Jabli ,I saw intense lightning outside. I heard threatening thunder in the far distance & the roaring of dark clouds as they welled up in the sky above us.
All signs of the rains rolling in?
Will it bring in some much-needed relief to the thirsty & parched up hills, will it quench up the trees, the plants & the forests & make all nature dance in tune & derive pleasure?
The wind picks up, the clouds sound more powerful & the lightning became more frequent and more intense. Lo there is a lovely drizzle which surprisingly within minutes turns into a heavy downpour. Sanjeev , my hubby is delighted, because loves the rains. In his eagerness to be in one with nature he drives faster & we reach Kasauli, bathing & drenching in the torrential (at that moment it looked like) rains.
I love nature & I love to watch the streams of water flowing down to the ground below as if uniting the heavens & earth. I often wonder how something as natural as the rains can be so amazing.
It was kind of a thunder storm. It was a little scary, because the Ladakh tragedy was very fresh but fascinating too. I loved the intensity of what’s happening outside. It was in a strange way very comforting & soothing. The more nature got intense the more the inner calm engulfed me.
Of all the feeling that was overpowering was, I have time now..
To breathe, to think, to take in the beauty & the serenity, take every day one hour at a time, to enjoy,recharge & relax and to just sit and read .
To be silent, stand still and listen to all the sounds of the birds, animals, insects etc & get enveloped in the silence of that sleepy cantonment.
I was eager to take in the breath taking experience, so as soon as the downpour turned into a drizzle all four of us took umbrellas & went out. The place is not so sleepy because we found all the shops open & some people still out enjoying the rains. There were very few tourists. It was very pleasant with the cool wind blowing bringing in the much needed relief to the warm people around. Moti & Shera our four legged friends who seem to be eternally there in the market , came running to us wagging their tails , as if always cherishing the bond of love between humans & animals. We get a few packs of biscuits from the Fatafat stall & share with them. Leaving them enjoying their treat we walk further towards Arhat bazaar & stop at the way side tea stall near Anchal hotel.
It’s a typical hilly stall, smelling of everything possible but a warm host & the tea at that point of time really welcome. The warmth & the pleasure from the greasy, oil oozing bread pakoras & the overtly sweetened tea was wonderful & inexplicable. It was like going back to childhood, enjoyment without any care or precaution. The clean, pure air was cleansing all the dirt & grime of the city from my lungs & refreshing me, filling me up with a zesty energy.
The three days there passed like a dream of which I was not willing to come out. The beautiful grey clouds intermingled with glimpses of blue & silver, the green clean hills, the clean cool breeze, the lovely flowers, the chirpy birds, the naughty monkeys, the squeaky squirrels all seemed to enjoy the beauty & rains with me. The “Himachali” folk tune played by the unknown boy still is ringing in my ears, so soulful & binding, as if calling the beloved to join him in the rains to dance like Radha & Krishna in the dancing water.
I had time to spend at my will but alas time flew by & it was time for me to return....
But not with a heavy heart but with new hopes & promises to return for more
Promises I made to the Morning store to come back for more sandwich & hot coffee, to Anand Dhaba to come back for a sumptuous homely meal, to the hills to come back to see them more beautiful. A promise to Shera & Moti to come back to enliven our friendship. A new promise to come back to the fresh, lovely & serene surroundings to come back & learn to live life my way in tune with them & get refreshed & rejuvenated.
So here I am sharing my wonderful experience with you, who is reading this & waiting with eagerness to fulfil my promise of going back to the calm, solitude of beautiful Kasauli to live Life a little more......
