Long ago

Saw Nissan Altima 2.5 SL at a display in the mall. Price tag $33,507.
Remembered my first brand new car, Cutlass Supreme- bigger, 8 cylinder 350 cc engine for meager $3,300.

Well, that was one wife, two daughters, two son in laws and two grand sons ago. Life was lot more simpler, lonely and not as joyful:)

कारवां

कारवां कभी रुकता नहीं
थके पैरोंमें दम फूंकता नहीं
गिरे हुओं को ऊठाने झुकता नहीं
रिश्ता उसका सिर्फ मंज़िल से
वास्ता ओरों से कभी रखता नहीं

Scene-1

Scene no 1, New York 1970, Polytechnic Institute of New York, Brooklyn

I was standing near the coffee machine with my quarter, wondering what magic trick dropped the cup in that square box and poured coffee in it.

A young man came, inserted the coins in the machine and asked "Chai" or coffee ! I opted for tea. He pushed the button, pulled out a cup and handed to me.

I showed him the quarter in my palm and he said in Urdu,
" No problem, Keep it, it is a pleasure meeting you".

Then he introduced himself.

" I am Ahemad from Pakistan".

" I am Bharat from India, so nice to meet you. Thanks for "Chai". I responded in Hindi.

Turned out, we both had taken the same courses in our Master's program.

We both were new in the country, in totally different environment. The language and cultural background became a bridge between us. We became friends and helped each other in our class work for two semesters.

What is common amongst us bring us together.

Scene 2

Scene 2, 2013 DeRidder LA

The traffic was very sparse on this road like any other road in this town. It was only 5:15 PM this late October afternoon and it had just begun to turn dark

I was on my daily three mile walk

Then, I see a lone bicyclist coming from the opposite direction. I looked back. There was no body behind me.

It was just him and me, I took a mental note.

As I continued pacing forward, he continued pedaling toward my direction. As distanced decreased, he became clearly visible . He was an African American male in his late twenties or early thirties.

He was riding a fairly beat up bicycle with a basket hanging off the handle, I took another mental note.

Now I remembered the advice my wife gave me almost everyday.

"Don't wear that "Rado" on your wrist and diamond rings on your fingers, while you take your walks. We do not know this town and its neighborhood well enough.

"This whole world is evil in your eyes, you have no faith in humanity" I would tell her.

It was time for me to eat my words, I thought. In fact it was time to act.

I thought of turning back. It was too late I told myself. Running away would not work either. He had the bike.

So, I quickly did the next best thing. Took my wrist watch and rings off and discreetly slid them in my pocket. Thought foolishly, my pocket would act as a safe deposit vault.

As he got closer, he slowed down. My heart rate increased and my thought process picked up the pace. First time I began to feel appreciation for the gun lobby.

"Good evening, sir" he greeted me when he was few yards away.

Then, he corrected his greetings immediately.

"Namaste" he said folding his hands.

" Namaste" I responded with a touch of embarrassment.

The basket off his bicycle handle had three books . One of them was Mahatma Gandhi's
" My Experiment With Truth"

It was truly too hard for me to hide my embarrassment

He saw that on my face and said, " I would have done the same thing myself sir"

He wished me pleasant evening and pedaled away.

What we don't know fears us. Prejudice is the byproduct of ignorance.

પ્રેમ

કહો છો પ્રેમ જેને, છે અનુભૂતિ થોડી પળોની
કહાણી હો ભલે લાંબી, હકીકત જુજ પાનાની
ભરત શાહ