the day that was her birthday

Somewhere in the middle of the day that was the fifth of feb., when we already had been together for half a day & still couldn't gather five minutes of solitude for ourselves, when she was sitting completely surrounded by friends at the Janpath MacDonald's and when i'd been totally bugged by calls from the office... sometime on the afternoon of the day that was her birthday, when she was sitting with an uncut cake at the table, waiting for me and when i was busy attending an official call... at some point between all the excitement & noise, across the crowd & the glass wall that separated us... our eyes met for a brief moment, and smiled... smiled at the day, at the moment, at the love of our friends, and at the helplessness we felt for each other, craving for a moment of togetherness, to be alone amongst all this. and we smiled.

perhaps that was the moment of the day for me. perhaps there were more.

have been thinking about how to write this post, for the past week or so. how to re-live those moments. the fact that i was a little unwell added to the indecision. so this post will flow where my mind and memory takes me. it'll be a meandering, little lengthier tale of the day that was her birthday. hope you'll stay with me till the end.


Tu

kabhi kabhi
subah uth-te hi
apni ankh se gira
mere khwabon ka ek tukda
rakhta hoon hatheli ki ulti taraf
aur phoonk maar
uda deta hoon hawa mein,
tera ehsaas hi to hai;
jahan jayega
pyaar failayega ye

in my part of the world, people say that if you find a fallen piece of your eyelash, don’t just throw it away. its a boon. keep it on the back of your palm, close your eyes, make a wish and blow it in the air. and your wish will definitely come true.

in my part of the world, people also say that i’ve good looking eyelashes :) so, this birthday of hers, i gave her three of these fallen stars from my eyes. “These are my dreams… now yours. Take care of them and… weave your dreams as mine.”

You

somedays
waking up in the morning
i take a piece of a dream
fallen from my eyes
and place it
on the back of my palm
and blow it in the air
it is your name,
wherever goes
love it will spread

eyes. hmmm. her eyes. they speak without saying, tell without showing and call out my name silently amongst the noise.

the day started with a phone call. i'd to be there since the start. so i called her up at around eleven thirty and continued till twelve ten. otherwise the number of friends she has, i wouldn't have stood a chance. sorry amrak. but i had to. she skipped school to come to my place and take blessings from ma 'n pa. the trouble with teachers is that they'll continue schoolgoing till their retirement :) anyways, me lazy bum had to get up n get ready, real quickly in order to be in time for her arrival. and still managed to be ten minutes late. and there she was. at the bus stand near my house and i couldn't say a word apart from embracing her. she was looking damn beautiful ;) the first moment of the day.

after breakfast and loads of gifts & wishes, we went to her first school near Dilli Haat. this was the one where she had done her internship and feels very attached to those kids. the moment we entered the class, there was a loud shout, didi!!! and children swarmed around her immediately. another moment of the day!!!
i've always measured a person's nature by seeing how children love him/her. and seeing how these children love her, i don't think have chosen an ordinary woman as my life. couldn't do much apart from hanging around, answering the class teacher's numerous personal queries (had an entire matrimonial interview sort of session) and listening to the stories the children were telling her.

meanwhile, had a call from office, for some urgent ad (which btw has been finalised only today, that is the fourteenth) and we rushed back to my dear office. i'd a gift waiting for her at the office also. a bottle of itr (perfume), of the flower bela (arabian jasmine). and neeru, my art partner, gave her a beautiful rose bud. by the time work was over, it was almost two in the afternoon and we'd to rush towards connaught place, as this was decided as the meeting point for all her friends.

in the auto, all the way till C.P., i kept looking at her, didn't say much, just kept listening, completely mesmerised by her presence. and those ear rings, when i'd brought them from my new year trip, seriously had no idea they'll look so captivating. it is she, who makes ordinary things look beautiful. it is she who can make a bumpy auto ride the most wonderful thing in this world. it is her head on my shoulder that makes me fall in love with life again and again. and this was the third moment of the day for me.

we all converged at the Janpath MacDonald's, where she cut two cakes in her honour. the chocolate one was by the adorable swat cat and the vanilla one by the lovable lizie. we had loads of fun, masti, leg pulling and laughter, but by the end of evening, i'd begun to have this aching desire to be alone with her. i know she felt the same. irony being, we still had to be freinds, who came over to share our happiness :) perhaps only nids or lizie felt this for us.

by the time we'd said all the byes and seen off our friends, she was already very late and had to rush back home. and this made both of us blue as we didn't want to leave each other. and i remained blue till this sunday when i met her again.

oh! apart from the dreams wish i gave her, there was this little book of delhidreams in which i assembled and printed all the posts n poems written for her. thanks to neeru and somu who made this book possible. and to all the clients who unknowingly helped by not burdening me with too much of work.
then there are the three samurais, my twin-aditi, dhemna chela dwai from kolkata and my dear friend shalini, the sigma. these three helped me compile the three sixty five songs i gave her as the birthday gift. this, 'a song for a day' will let me celebrate her birthday all through the year. plus, there was a special cd of twenty two of my most favourite songs for her.

and the most loving of all, a bal gopal, my friend Krishna's little figure as a child. He is the one who'll look after us, all through this life and beyond. and i wanted Him to be present at her home, as my special ops agent :)

and, i don't know what else to say. i've to finish this post, and i've no words to say, how much i love her. all i can wish her is love. that i'll be with her on many more birthdays to come. and each one will be more special than the previous one.

its such a rare and tender thing to be in love, when all around i see everything that's the complete opposite, and a fear crawls into mind, what if? but then, her eyes come back to fill me with love. and i'm alright again.

may Gopal bless us. and you, my friends, please wish us love. and be with us, in this journey called delhidreams, of a love for life and a life for love.

and oh, yes,

Happy Birthday Dee