Every time I write a blogpost, I genuinely feel that I have now reached a point where thoughts and words are going to flow ever so easily and there are going to be posts after posts after posts. And every time I post a post and come back to write another post, I realise that there is no post but a drought of words and posts ! Sigh !
Yet, here I am, back after "post" drought for one more Post :-)
I’m going to tell you about a morning which taught me an important life lesson!
It started with an encounter with a barista at a coffee shop that I visit regularly.
She didn’t look happy…. Her “Good Morning” was filled with disdain and displayed immense lack of interest in me.
I asked for a cold brew - because I am cool like that :-)
She responded with “Chhee” ! And a look of horror on her face..
Me (shocked and err a bit scared): Excuse me?
She: Cold brew kyu? - with that same disdain…
Me: Ok, so what then, if I shouldn’t take cold brew…… with a quivering voice and fake courage…
She, defiantly: I don’t know ma’am, it’s your choice…..
At this point, my brain wasn’t sure if she was giving me a hint about how cold brew was bad there or she was just angry with my choice and wanted me to pick another. If you know me, you know I am a die-hard people pleaser and often I don’t consider myself one of those people to be pleased. So I gave in and asked for “chai tea latte”.
She: Madam aapka choice hai, dekh lo!
Me: Bye! And turned around to go back to my table at astonishing speed!
I decided that this was the best way ahead for me. It was God who was indirectly discouraging me from having a cold brew with outside water. Maybe it wasn’t the right choice in monsoon. I made my peace with God’s voice and sat at the table drinking hot water that I had from home.
The barista on the other hand was a bit scared. She felt that this could potentially lead to a complaint, so she came to my seat and tried small talk and offered a cold brew. By this point, I had disavowed cold brew from my life itself. But curiosity got the better of me and I asked her why she reacted like that. She said in a softer tone that she had gotten completely drenched in the rain while on her way to work and the thought of a cold drink instantly evoked that sentiment, but she shouldn’t have said it out loud. I could understand…. Mumbai monsoons are crazy. They are wild and dirty. Not a combination for rain, of all things :-)
I sympathised and she left. She came back in ten mins, sat at my table and got us 2 piping hot mochas - Meri taraf se ma’am - let’s enjoy :)
That was a wonderful morning right there :-)
I left from there in a zippy mood. Tea and good company was a great combination!
I walked up to the auto stand where I was instantly rejected by a few autowallahs who wanted to go to the moon but I had so stupidly asked to be dropped to Bandruhhh!
One guy said aajao madam, sabne hi mana kar diya. I have a feeling he was mocking me - but I had also lost any will to fight by then ……. I was in his auto for 17 mins, but “Yeh satra minute” were full of lessons.
He asked me why I was in such a rush, I said I had to pick up my son from school and I was running a bit late.
As soon as I sat in his auto, he started talking loudly on the phone with someone, the conversation was filled liberally with ingenious profanities. He was actually arguing heatedly, about the colour of paint that the person at the other end had chosen for some important wall at home. Argument had turned into an impasse, when he suddenly threatened to not buy chicken for that night. After a moment of deafening silence, the other person relented.
I was impressed at the power of chicken.
This guy was happy and victorious and he smiled at me and said, madam chicken sab cheez theek kar deta hai. I smiled back marvelling at what had unfolded. He asked aap nahi khaate? I said No. He was annoyed:- “kya hi faayda phir”.
He stopped talking to me after that. He looked unhappy too. I couldn’t believe I had spoiled someone’s mood just by not eating chicken. We stopped at a signal and he bought tea for himself from a vendor and drank it in one shot. I could see it was really hot, but well, this level of anger at me had made him immune to heat, it seems.
By the time we reached my destination, his mood had lightened and I think he decided to forgive me, thanks to that hot tea. He said chalo koi nahi madam. Lekin ek request hai- aapke ladke ko aap jaisa mat banaao madam, usko life mein chai aur chicken zaroor khilaana! Kyunki dukh to bohot hai, lekin khushi isi mein hai !! And zoomed off yelling more profanities on other autos and cars around.
It was a busy morning mentally for me. The two people I had encountered, had had to deal with issues at their own end, had decided to judge me from their own loaded lens, but the common placating factor for both of them, was a hot, nicely brewed cuppa.
So, as I stood thinking about them in the school pick-up line, I realised that truly there are many trials and tribulations in life, problems and issues being hurled at you at breakneck speed, but what do they really hold to a good cup of well brewed hot tea or coffee eh ….. chicken notwithstanding :) :)
Ek garam chai ya mocha ki pyaali ho!
