A Monsoon Dream...

When I was younger, I always found the monsoons to be a time when magic happened.
Sure, it rains torrentially for three months in a row, but the serenity and peace that comes with the rains, is something that I find unmatched even to this very day. Maybe it was the earthy smells -- the wet mud, fresh greens... wet everything. Maybe it was the scenery... the lush greens, reds, browns... everything as nature intended it to be. I remember sitting on the spiral staircase near our flat and just staring out into the world thinking, "This is where I come from ... this is who I am."

I have one distinct memory about the rainy season in Goa. My mum was driving us home from school one day, and it was raining uncontrollably. After we got home and she parked the bike, she went upstairs to get started on dinner. Instead of following her to our flat, I ran up to the terrace, in the rains, in my khaki school uniform and just stood there. Without my raincoat, without my shoes. I felt the water pour down on me, as I stood there, 6 storeys high. The water gushed over me like someone was pouring down buckets from the heavens. It soaked my clothes, making them cling to me... heavy. I still remember how my feet felt on the concrete. The water wasn't cold... but it wasn't warm either. I remember standing there and just breathing. I was 10. I was alive. I was one with the earth.

These days, I long for those feelings of being grounded. I long for days when I was forced to stay home on lazy afternoons and really appreciate life and beauty. Spring in Toronto cannot match the beauty of Goan monsoons. I remember literally going to bed one night and waking up the next morning to full blooms in the garden... dancing in the rain.

It's raining in Goa right now. I know this because I have the weather tuned to Toronto and Goa on my computer. Perhaps if I can make an even blend of the two temperatures, I can articulate how I feel at this very moment.

I still can't. I've been at a loss for words for about a week now. There's so much that I want to say and yet, I can't bring myself to do it.

Everyone can use some magic in their lives these days, you know?

xo
SC