What was the last thing you did for play or fun?

The contours of our locality has changed considerably since the District Court has come up right opposite our Block.

Law Firms and Legal Offices have mushroomed. Men in black hover around. The influx of ‘justice seekers’ has raised  safety and security concerns for the residents.

The flat adjacent to mine is one such portico of legal services. Till now the inmates have respected our privacy. However, the strip of street bordering the building is gradually turning into a public parking lot, specifically, for two wheelers.

After detailed discussions, it has come on me, the ground floor occupier, to tell off the visitors not to park in front of our premise. This implies I have to be ready always at the front gate to immediately forestall whosoever is about to park. An impossible task. (Usually I notice when they are leaving).

Lately, a scooty stands right in front of my kitchen window. My unassuming, narrow streak of a garden lies in between the vehicle and my kitchen. It belongs to a girl visiting the legal outfit next door. I mostly spot her when she is departing. 

The girl is pretty usually escorted out by a tall, handsome boy in his customary attire. I observe an everyday ritual to her departure. Before putting on her helmet she loosens her dark tresses and leisurely ties them up again in a bun while softly conversing with the boy who looks quite smitten by the whole activity.  It’s midday. The sun shines on her face. It glows like a rainbow. The boy’s eyes speak more than words.

This is the opportune moment for me to barge in with ladle in hand telling her to park elsewhere. But…I…simply… can’t… be a kabab mein haddi…. and interrupt a budding romance, or so, I presume.

So I throw caution to wind and gloat over the rosy cheeked couple like a doting granny and wish the interlude blossoms into a full fledged melody.

It’s been more than a week now since her last. B-I-L sternly says, “You should tell her not to park here any more. It’s intrusive.”

I know…But isn’t it fun to watch a blob blooming into a chiaroscuro of colours?

A courtship right in front of my nose?

Fun isn’t it?

I giggle to myself.

Am I not being as intrusive as they are ….?

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About gc1963

A working woman with interests in reading, writing, music, poetry and fine arts.

25 responses »

  1. gabychops's avatar gabychops says:

    I think, Geeta, you might be invited to their wedding!

    Joanna

    Liked by 3 people

  2. Veerites's avatar Veerites says:

    I am proud to be the friend of such a person with lovely and lively heart ❤️ anyone else in your place would have been prosaic by directly shouting at them but you put yourself in their shoes. Great Geeta ❤️

    Liked by 2 people

  3. Dear Geeta ji,🙏🌹

    Reading this piece felt less like encountering a neighbourhood complaint and more like watching a silent romantic film, screened daily right outside your window.
    The only ticket involved, of course, was a parked scooter. 😄
    The parking issue may be real enough, but the ritual, loosening her hair in the sunlight and tying it back again, unhurried and unaware, has such quiet charm that even a No Parking sign would politely look the other way.
    And there you are, ladle in hand, caught between civic duty and compassion, less a vigilant resident and more a guardian of a fleeting romance.
    What makes the piece truly delightful is your gentle understanding that sometimes being human matters more than being right, and that silence can be the most courteous form of objection.
    The closing question is perfect:
    “Am I not being as intrusive as they are…?”
    It makes the reader smile and admit, yes, we are all, in our own ways, discreet window-side observers of life. 😄
    And this colourful little verse seems to write itself:
    The rules knocked at the door; the heart said, “Wait a while
    A scene of love is playing; parking can come later.”
    A charming, witty, and deeply humane piece
    a reminder that sometimes life smiles before the law does, and that smile is what lingers.
    -Vijay

    Liked by 2 people

  4. 😂😁 In the grand ledger of a life well-lived, a few square feet of pavement are a small price to pay for the privilege of watching a story begin. Let the scooty stay. Let the bun be tied and retied. The Law can wait; the rainbow in the sun cannot.🥰🥰

    Liked by 1 person

  5. This made me smile in that quiet way you do when you catch yourself enjoying something you probably shouldn’t interfere with. I could picture the whole scene so clearly the garden the scooty the sunlight the hair being tied back and that small pause where life feels softer than rules.

    Maybe that little daily moment was your play without planning to. Just standing there watching something gentle unfold and choosing not to break it. Fun does sneak up like that sometimes no noise no games just a giggle you keep to yourself.

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Sadje's avatar Sadje says:

    Haha! You have a romantic heart Geeta

    Liked by 2 people

  7. You are not intrusive at all.
    Nothing was interrupted, nothing demanded—just a quiet moment noticed and enjoyed. Watching life unfold, without stepping in, is very human.
    Sometimes play is simply smiling at what passes by and letting it remain untouched. 😄😄

    Liked by 1 person

  8. Rupali's avatar Rupali says:

    I love the way you weave the story 😊

    Liked by 1 person

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