I brewed my usual glass of strong evening coffee
It was awesome if I say so myself
What better place, I thought, to enjoy this amazing drink
My favorite bench on my balcony
Surrounded by my little garden
I made a mistake
I took my phone along
And fell into the old ways
Head down, checking messages
Something prompted me to look up
Oh, dear God! How beautiful
A perfect V formation of storks heading home for the day
A sign — for me to discard my phone
To soak in the atmosphere
To seek a still moment
And how much there was to soak in
I laugh when I think about it
So much action this evening and every evening
Groups of birds flying back home after a hard day’s work
A koel crying lustily (or not) somewhere hidden among the trees
My favorite red-whiskered bulbuls chattering excitedly
They always have much to say
Workers drilling, welding, hammering away at the nearby construction site
Evening walkers with their brisk steps
To match whatever was playing in their fat headphones
Children playing, shouting, arguing
The breaky voices of near-puberty boys
Gosh, are they loud!
The loud boom of a passing jet
I craned my neck and noted with pride
It was an Indian airforce craft
How did I know? Oh, I saw our tricolor
Meanwhile, the Sun was setting
And setting buildings on fire with his orange light
I saw flames dancing on a glass facade building
The fire dimmed slowly
The Sun sank in deeper
The evening lights came on
The birds went home
The workers laid down their tools
The kids were still shouting and playing
A new batch of walkers arrived
I dragged myself back in
My moment of stillness had ended
I felt recharged
It was the coffee
It was the feverish chirping of birds during homecoming
It was the thrum of life
It was the fact that I could see, hear, smell, feel all this
Yes, it was the joy of being alive
Anu Anniah Writes 