On the highway

It's amazing how the sights and sounds
you attempted to capture in the day
change character when darkness descends

The trees, the ponds and wells
ancient temples and sprawling churches
paddy fields and pools of water

coconut trees and a cloud-laden sky
bananas, apples and oranges hanging from ramshackle roofs

newest cars parked inside sprawling bungalows
school children with neatly combed hair, backpacks and eyes that light up when they see the camera
tiny courtyards of little houses;
dark, mysterious interiors that hold secrets of lives like yours and mine
disappear into thin air,
replaced by rows after rows of houses and shops; indistinguishable, continuous,

lit so bright that you can see inside;
the man in a mundu, seated on the floor watching television, lights dancing on his hairy chest,
a boy kneeling in front of the altar, looking upwards, palms joined...

temples look like haunted houses, the sky dark and starless, 

bright red flags of the communists

triangles and rectangles, on strings and poles,
blend with the road 

appearing briefly when a speeding vehicle's light reflects on them -
less menacing, subdued and almost subservient...

It is true  

somethings die and somethings come to life
when darkness descends on the highway

Blood Moon, Chizhik-Pyzhik and I

Diwali cleaning always manages to throw up some surprises. Every year while cleaning up I find remnants of the year gone by, a dress I bought which has now become loose, one part of a favourite earring, old clippings, older memories and some fresh perspectives.

It is when I sat down to clean up my silver jewellery case that I came across the Chizhik-Pyzhik. Locket on a black thread, it jumped up at me surreptitiously, the tiny little object, nudging me along a series of memories I had kept locked away.

That was three nights ago.

I lost fitful sleep that night. Couldn't rest. Tossed and turned. This way. That way. Sudden bouts of indigestion took over; it happens to me when I am anxious. Woke up feeling tired, unsure, a bit unhappy, a bit sad and very confused.

In the morning sometime I saw a notification from a friend on Facebook who'd written about her own restless night, as her thoughts filled her with anxiety, revelations and aspirations. This is what she wrote:

It's known as the Blood Moon....Chaotic endings and transformable beginnings? Total Lunar Eclipse on 8th Oct 2014. Times of change, often preceding natural or man-made cataclysms as predicted by astrologers, that major events will occur in the world and in our personal lives, revealing things unknown and bringing situations to a climax or critical point. So its time for radical shifts, changes, endings and new beginnings in our personal and collective lives. Intense and possibly highly emotions that will trigger and push everything to the edge and beyond. So I am trying to look at this positively..... god, please give me strength and patience during this time, to harness the tremendous energy available to us for transformation for the highest best for myself and my place in this Universe. This is a perfect time to become a witness and watch yourself and your emotions and an opportunity to change the way you react to the World and reinvent yourself.....

‘This full moon and eclipse triggers a two week time frame of revolutionary intensity that can either propel you into radical transformation or have you falling off the three-legged stool. Your ability to pay attention, and to stay focused and present while also allowing yourself to grab the power of the storm, will be key to staying firmly on the stool’.

I wrote to her about my experience to which she responded, "Sensitive people will feel it the most."

It is night number 3 today and somehow I feel like I am falling off the three-legged stool.