Not The Pictures I Wanted...

I can save everything my eyes see...I have my own little Monet'esque pictures of Central Park, of the clubs in New York, of the Streets of London....but those aren't the ones I want

I want Delhi! I want home! I want the crowds, the sun beating down turning everything to a hard, crinkley feel, the masses, the buses with people exploding like the innards coming forth, the chaat waalas (the spicy junk food for those who aren't in the know), the subzi waalas (the guys selling veggies and stuff from carts), the cows, the filth and the glorious beauty of everything I call home...I want to remember the smells and the sounds, the heat and the heartbreak...I want to come home

I remember reaching the airport, the drive there to pick me up, the wall of heat that I have never felt anywhere else, the hubub of the airport, people hugging and families being whole again, pushing my trolley down the slope, suitcase precariously balanced as the front wheels struggle to tear down the trolley in half.
I see the car and load my stuff in, I'm silent on the way home, remembering everything, the odd truck pulled over on the side of the road with engine trouble, the autos, the red lights, passing by Shoppers Stop with the excitement building of walking up the steps to a place that is home

I notice the new figures or knicknacks hanging outside the door, the new state of Ganesh in a clay finish, the decoartions my folks brought back from Greece...I keep the doorbell pressed so only half the two-part note breaks, letting go after a few seconds...

I hear my parents bed room door open and the dogs yipping away...the door opens and I see my mum in her nighty, the dogs jumping up and down as if on springs...

I miss home...and yet its no longer "where my love lies waiting silently for me" (apropo Simon & G)...but it's still home



Send me picture of Delhi please...anything that reminds me of where I come from, of Turquoise Cottage which was a few minutes away and could be counted on for a fun time, of Mocha where I hung out with the sheesha so much, of the Big Chill and all those movie posters which I remember so well and so want...

Send me a picture of a Delhi smile