I was teaching photosynthesis to tenth graders a few days back and wanted to prove that chlorophyll is necessary for photosynthesis. True to my habit of using theatrical opening lines, I began with " In science, whenever you need to prove that some component is essential, you have to simply remove it from the system to realise its sigificance"
Forty pairs of amused eyes looked back at me. Someone whispered ," Isn't that true for life as well ?"
I was taken aback for a moment and then carried on bravely by agreeing to the speaker, and mentioning the age old ," if you love something, let it go. If it loves you it will surely come back."
It led me to wonder, what if I did not know whether I loved someone or not?
In India, as arranged marriages go, I too met my husband (then a stranger) ten years back. Since I could put tick marks on all my checklists, I agreed to getting married. A few months of courtship led to getting bonded for life.
All was mishy mushy, and ritualistically we whispered "I love you" to each other, ever so often. But there was always that burning question in my mind, "How do I verify that I love him?" Blame the scientist in me, but I needed conclusive evidence and not abstract nouns to define love.
My experimental proof came in one day while visiting a shopping mall in Delhi. As we sat down for lunch with our kids, suddenly police arrived and announced that the mall needed to be vacated due to a bomb scare. We immediately rushed out, as sniffer dogs and bomb squads started combing the area.
Our car was parked in the basement of the building and we were stuck without it. We waited for a while for a green signal from the police, but none came. Slowly a few people started trickling down to the car park to retrieve their cars and leave the premises. My husband decided to do the same and ran into the basement.
Those five minutes while I waited outside holding the hands of my two young sons, were the longest in my life. The air of uncertainty, not knowing what was about to happen, the possibility of a freak bomb blast, the realisation that my kids were staring at my stony face, is difficult to put into words.
Somehow the time passed and I was relieved to see him emerging with the car unharmed. As I sat in the car, suddenly my mind filled with inexplicable happiness. I had got what I wanted. Now I knew conclusively that I was Iin love. Nothing else could explain the agony of the past five minutes. I was sad that we had to go though this traumatic experience, but then again, how else would the diamond sparkle if it is not cut ?
Forty pairs of amused eyes looked back at me. Someone whispered ," Isn't that true for life as well ?"
I was taken aback for a moment and then carried on bravely by agreeing to the speaker, and mentioning the age old ," if you love something, let it go. If it loves you it will surely come back."
It led me to wonder, what if I did not know whether I loved someone or not?
In India, as arranged marriages go, I too met my husband (then a stranger) ten years back. Since I could put tick marks on all my checklists, I agreed to getting married. A few months of courtship led to getting bonded for life.
All was mishy mushy, and ritualistically we whispered "I love you" to each other, ever so often. But there was always that burning question in my mind, "How do I verify that I love him?" Blame the scientist in me, but I needed conclusive evidence and not abstract nouns to define love.
My experimental proof came in one day while visiting a shopping mall in Delhi. As we sat down for lunch with our kids, suddenly police arrived and announced that the mall needed to be vacated due to a bomb scare. We immediately rushed out, as sniffer dogs and bomb squads started combing the area.
Our car was parked in the basement of the building and we were stuck without it. We waited for a while for a green signal from the police, but none came. Slowly a few people started trickling down to the car park to retrieve their cars and leave the premises. My husband decided to do the same and ran into the basement.
Those five minutes while I waited outside holding the hands of my two young sons, were the longest in my life. The air of uncertainty, not knowing what was about to happen, the possibility of a freak bomb blast, the realisation that my kids were staring at my stony face, is difficult to put into words.
Somehow the time passed and I was relieved to see him emerging with the car unharmed. As I sat in the car, suddenly my mind filled with inexplicable happiness. I had got what I wanted. Now I knew conclusively that I was Iin love. Nothing else could explain the agony of the past five minutes. I was sad that we had to go though this traumatic experience, but then again, how else would the diamond sparkle if it is not cut ?
1 comment:
Had two days of ruthless, unending workload, and was beginning to go into the "existential crisis" special to this phase, when I took some time to read your blog. Undoubtedly the most beautiful lines I have read in a long, long time. Just fantastic... One special thing about you I realized only today (having known you all my life) is your unparalleled courage to bare your soul - so few of us have it!
Again, just fantastic!
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