Beautiful Relationship

When I think of the initial days of our relationship , I feel that there was always a connection between us. Maybe when our eyes met ,or in the touch or when we shared a sparring verbal match which invariably ended with no one winning ... I feel there was something special .

The initial acquaintance grew albeit slowly into something more strong , unexplainable and though it tottered on its weak stems , it still flourished for reasons unknown . There would not have been two people so different in their thinking or attitudes as they were similar. I know it sounds complicated but there is no other way to say it.

One harboured a broken love affair which ended when the love of his life did not turn up at the altar ... it evoked all my sympathies which was actually not required as he was made of sterner stuff . While I carried mental and physical scars of another life - the physical ones fading into nothingness with time but the mental ones stubbornly refusing to retreat and which surfaced at agonizing times threatening the foundations of my relationships . Two lost , hurt souls found each other on a platform which nobody thought was possible .

As we drew closer to each other and discovered innumerable topics and countless hours to argue on the vagaries of life and the politics of the world , we lost all sense of time . Thousands of minutes spent over innumerable cups of coffee , sharing a common love for music , books and the cinema brought out the common aspects we shared while the innocence and naivety of mine compared to his cynicism and worldliness brought out the glaring differences but a meeting of thoughts and feelings. Though in terms of maturity , i felt a hundred years older . It was laughable though to see such diverse creatures still enjoying each other and remaining bonded through innumerable differences . I wonder why ... maybe we were connected through invisible bonds or with an awareness of a man and a woman which is unexplainable but as old as time .

He lived from day to day enjoying the simple pleasures of life and unafraid to speak his mind and seemingly uncaring of the people around him. It was not that he was rude or insensitive but he could draw the lines very deftly without anyone encroaching his personal space . It was a simple case of living your life as you want to without being afraid of social expectations. There was an openness in thoughts ,mind and heart , a freedom in speech , in thinking and actions that I have never seen before in anyone else but without crossing boundaries on mutual agreements. We humans generally never allow fellow humans to remain as they are or live as they want to . We need to stand on judgement with everyone and everything maybe because it satisfies our need to remain in control.

I drew upon his strength to cover my earlier follies , to regain my lost confidence , to learn to love and to live with an optimism only he carried with him .The sun seemed to shine more brightly and the days seemed happier and fun -something I had forgotten in the river of life. My scars did not seem so bad and I healed slowly believing that I could live and I was a person in my own right .I could say 'no' when I meant it and people would still love me for who I am . I could lead my life on my terms without fear of being alone because he gave me the confidence to believe in myself and that nobody can help you better than yourself. He taught me that strength existed in me and I had to draw upon this to live my

life to the fullest . In short , I explored the realms of life outside my narrow earlier island existence. It would have frightened the older me to do this but the new me ( shaped from his touch ) was eager and willing to take on life and live it to the fullest whatever be the outcome.

I know it would be terribly selfish of me to say that I benefit the most from this relationship but it would be the truth . The only way I can reciprocate is by being there when he needs me. Being with him made me feel as though my soul had escaped from the narrow confines of my island country into the vast, extravagant spaces of his.

I end this with an ode -

Sometimes in this busy ,vibrant world,

As I ran amok the daily humdrum wearing blinkers ,

I was stopped ... to remember to smell the flowers on the way ,

Appreciate the gift of being alive and what I have than what I do not ,

By an unknown passerby who had no meaning in my life till then ,

I know not if I will continue to do this once ways part , ...

But still thank the time I did stop in my life.....