Mon Amie

Amie....friend...companion...amigo...someone who makes your life complete with all the elements that make life worth living. When the heart is overflowing with emotions and the mind is longing for company, a friend is the only solution.We find our friends everywhere....whether it is our fellow colleagues at work , class mates, the kids next door...in some cases pets....and in most cases people we often meet and tend to talk to become friends like the watchman standing at your building gate, the clerk who works in your school/college, the fellow commuters who are a regular part of your journey.Hardly do we realize that they are our friends and form an important although not that significant part of our everyday life. Just like everyone I am blessed to have a great set of friends who cheer me up when I am upset, motivate me when I am struggling , make me happy all the time and give me bliss every moment I spend in their company. They etch out memories like the sculptures of Michaelangelo , indelible and indestructible, everlasting and unending moments which will surpass the test of time to keep flashing happiness in my eyes. But that is not it. There's someone very special. A friend who has been there with me all my life...silently living and growing to become a part of life which has been conveniently ignored, taken for granted.But still there are no complaints from my amigo...instead there is endless forgiveness. Now that I will be missing my amie i realize the difference this bonding has made over the years. Before the hype created gives in, I present to you my friend, the king of friends: MUMBAI....yes...Mumbai...I don't know how and when it happened..but I am glad I live in Mumbai...and Mumbai lives in my heart... You expect a friend to understand you all the time and Mumbai has been that way: understanding. A friend should warn you when he thinks you are going wrong and Mumbai keeps warning me over and over again when it finds me doing something wrong. Friendship is the thread which binds with love and care where love is selfless and care comes from the scrupulous heart...kind and benevolent.Mumbai has a place for all my emotions , each place having the uniqueness for every possible emotion. A friend cannot do more than that!!! The seas of Mumbai have taught me to be kind and forgiving...they take in all that we put in them without any complain...whether it be the garbage or the elephant God. The promenade at Marine Lines and the like keep telling me to look beyond boundaries and to never impede my vision with shortsightedness . Whether it be Id or Diwali, Mumbai has imbibed in me the charm of a celebration. With the charisma of Colaba to the serenity of Santacruz Mumbai has instilled in me the confidence to dream and not dread. Temples , mosques , churches, agiaris and the like have cultured in me tolerance and the atrocities that Mumbai has witnessed bring with them lessons of being human. It wouldn't be an exaggeration if I said Mumbai has held my heart in the right place and filled it with all the compassion it needs to live a life with a purpose, a purpose to serve humanity.