It was frog green, you might as well call
it ugly. It would screech and growl with clenched jaws and still not reach a
speed of 40kmph. It would breathe in
fresh pure air of the hills and exhale out dense black fumes from its garbled
lungs. It huffed and puffed and belched as it
tried to squeeze through narrow serpentine roads overlooking cliffs and valleys
and at each hilly turn, all the skinny passengers aboard that bus gingerly clutched
any adjacent bars, handles or rods for fear of being rolled off by the
mischievous centrifugal force..
The mid-aged fellow behind the wheels looked
least bit athletic but he showed sufficient dexterity when he steered the big
black steering wheel, carefully manoeuvring the big fat bus around tricky turns
and bends.
The bus conductor in turn had a gift of the
garb starting instant conversation pertaining to weather (dhoop), potato prices
and condition of roads with on-boarding passengers (favorite topic of
conversation for Paharis) while tearing out tickets.
Between the two of them they ran a
successful courier business, carrying packages back and forth between families
living along the bus route and for their services they were well paid- fruits,
vegetables, cooked meals, winter clothing and occasionally a pack of
cigarettes.
As for the bus route it was an absolute
delight, passing through the lower Himalayan ranges with occasional views of
the glistening snow capped mountains. Step farming is a common practice here,
the green-carpeted stairs look inviting for a jumping match. Tall pine trees,
Oak trees and Deodar trees form a dense canopy hiding the elusive sun. Many a
dark nights people run into a stray leopard roaming these dense jungles. The
route is undoubtedly scenic however each season has a different highlight. In
winters there is nothing more inviting than fresh snow-carpeted hills with
brightly colored birds hopping and leaving their footprints around. The early
spring is the season of fresh green shoots and bright red rhododendron blossoms. The
monsoon season ushers in the fruit season- apples, pears, peaches, apricots,
plums, strawberries, pomegranate, almonds, some very native fruits like small
dark ‘kafal’.. It’s a long list.
This is a magical story of a journey for a little
impressionable girl onboard this bus going to her Nani’s home in the hills. Mesmerized by the pristine beauty, and
slightly lightheaded by the circuitous journey she unconsciously drifted into a
dreamlike state where her imagination further accentuated reality to create a
beautiful tantalizing memory for her adult life.
That monsoon season was very generous to
the hills, and the trees were bent with heavy load of fruits. The bus meandered
through the narrow road flanked by apple orchards on either side. Sitting tall
in the bus she was at a good height to survey the colorful apple trees around.
The branches of the apple trees seemed so close that they almost brushed
against the bus. A shiny red apple caught her dreamy eyes and with all the
agility she could muster she plucked it right off the tree while sitting inside
the moving bus. Ah.. What a moment of absolute delight! Wonder if anyone had
ever done that before. She took a victory
bite and the juicy apple was quite a mouthful..
What joy lies in the simple luxuries of life, like eating a Delicious apple and gazing through the window at the passing
hills!
Imagine a long drive and just when you feel
a little hungry or a little thirsty you can just pull an apple from thin air. This
little memory fills me with joy and a part of me still believes that you can
get lucky enough for an apple on the go!
I drove through this route again after more
than 20 years. The fat ugly bus was politely ignored; the route was just as
scenic and magical. As for the re-run of the apple story, I had to console myself
with buying a bag of apples by a vendor sitting by the road side..
For some reason certain dreams, memories
and impressions are more vivid, beautiful, tantalizing and real-life than well
real-life! Sometimes our dreams embody our deepest desires and wishes in their
truest form, more than we concede in any waking hour. I wake up sometimes
smiling inwardly at a weird conversation I had with a long lost friend,
sometimes a forgotten childhood memory plays out and sometimes I just eat
apples off a moving bus :)
Maa enjoying an apple..
PS: This post is not about Apple watch or any of its kins..
