Woke up bleary eyed, hoping the alarm was not mine, had to go to pick up our parents at the station, the husband and me went off both trying to rub the sleep off our eyes.
Settled into a comfortable position after making enquiries regards"our" train. To be up so early in the morning,is part of a routine for most people, the city really does not sleep, of course 0430 am in the morning by the citys standard is hardly early, half of the population is on their way to work, and the other half helping them to get there.
The station was a beehive of activity, the emotions, the goodbyes, the welcomes, the haggling everything was there for us to see, all on a single canvas.
A huge family disembarked,and seemed lost, gave me an impression that they were looking out for a member to welcome them, the disappointment on their faces as they searched the station, and then suddenly he(apparently the head of the family)squealed in delight at the sight of him, conveying to the rest of his clan,in a language I could not understand(His actions explained it to me)"He is there, hey hey(hands frantically waving ) look here, we are all here", and then, the chaos within their group the hugs the embraces, everything that said"Welcome"...
On the other side, a young couple that had traveled long distance and looked very much in need of a hot bath and some steaming coffee, were in the middle of a heated argument, a bag thrown on the platform, and their backs facing each other, conveyed what a long tiring journey, can do, fray ones nerves.
This little incident took my heart away two senior citizens, traveling long distance and the amount of luggage said it all, they were going for long.Haggling with the porter to lower the fee, the porter a kind hearted soul conceded to their request, the elderly man had all the bags on him and the lady was walking freely, the porter, like i mentioned a kind hearted soul, was guiding them thru the hustle and the bustle, which was really so nice.
So many thoughts kept passing thru my head, as busy as people maybe, they always have time to stretch out for another. A tiny little girl, who refused to walk, the length of the platform, was sobbing, her parents were loaded with bags all over them, a gentleman came over and helped the baby get into the mothers arms(best place ever!)...
Suddenly the loudspeaker making the announcements, and the husbands nudge, brought me into what we had really come for... Lovely to see my parents after almost two months...Welcome to Mumbai, hugs kisses, embraces, and the non-stop chatter mum and me were into was clear to see how much we missed them......
