What is this life if, full of care, we have no time to stand and stare...

Yawn!! It was a beautiful Sunday.... I tossed and turned in my bed, wrapped my body in the cozy blanket to brave the chill of the morning. I wanted to sleep for five minutes longer, so that I could see the end of the dream that was now broken. Even as my eyelids fluttered, I saw a yellow streak of light barge in through the gap between the curtains. How did the sun manage to wake up so early on a Sunday, was it never tired? Didn’t it ever party till late on a Saturday night? I shoved my childish thoughts away as I stretched each muscle of my body.

I lazily walked up to the kitchen sink where the vessels from last night’s dinner lay unwashed. I rinsed a saucepan and measured water for tea. As the water boiled, I watched. Bubbles formed on the surface, and the bubbles burst, each time letting out a gush of colorless, odorless vapor. I added the tea powder, intently watching the water change color… it turned orange, and then red, and then dark maroon before it was finally brown. I strained the concoction into a cup and observed it turn lighter as I added milk. I wondered, “How many colors have I seen since morning?”

Tea cup in hand with a pack of biscuits, I headed straight to the balcony. This was my favorite place on a Sunday morning when I had nothing else scheduled. As I approached my seat, I knew what I was going to spend the next hour doing. It was peaceful, it was bliss. I enjoyed this silence… my only propeller for waking up early on a Sunday morning. Occasionally, a bird chirped nearby, the sound of the wind a sort of accompaniment to it. The plants swayed from side to side, their flowers seemed to wave me good morning. I found myself smiling, being one with nature, enjoying every moment of this. I was joyous from within, I wanted to dance, I wanted to sing, I felt like gurgling with laughter with the innocence on a child. I threw my hands up and wide as if embracing everything that God had to offer me in his today… I felt life… This was the paradise that I so always wanted to live in. But I knew this was not here to last…

Slosh!! a car went by, splashing water from the puddle and smoke from its butt. Bow wow!!! I recognized the neighborhood dog as it chased the car. Along with this rose all the sounds of the earth. Somewhere an alarm went off, somewhere I could hear a kid wailing. Telephones were ringing, radios were playing, children were shrieking, people were shouting.

As I went back in into my room I couldn’t help thinking, “Was this paradise lost or was this paradise lost…” Contributing my bit to the noise around, I switched on my laptop to play some songs.