Bat and the moon

The other evening, I was standing at the bus stop, waiting for the bus. It was just 1 day before full moon night. The angle of the eye with respect to the moon was 30 degrees. The moon was almost round and was radiating light beautifully. I was admiring the beauty of the moon when I saw some bats flying. This was not surprising becuase there is a bat colony in the area where I was. After I saw a few bats, I thought - "Can I see a bat in flight, wings at full stretch, right in front of the moon?" I wanted to see that sight and was hoping for it. However, I was also keeping an eye on the traffic and the bus. One group of bats flew by, but no luck. All of them avoided the path that I was hoping for - none of them came in front of the moon. Soon I saw my bus in the distance. Immediately I saw a second group of bats approaching. I was hoping that this might be the group which will fulfil my desire. But that was not to be... The closest I got to my desire was when half the right wing of one of the bats came in front of the moon. I still couldn't see what I wanted. But nevertheless, I consoled myself that I saw a part of the wing of a bat in front of the moon. I quickly checked the position of my bus. Thanks to the traffic, it was moving slowly, but steadily, much closer to the stop than where I had seen it earlier. I was thinking if I would get a chance to see what I wanted to see. And I saw a third group of bats flying. 2 - 3 bats flew by, and I continued to wait. Then the moment came... One bat flew directly in my line of sight with the moon - wings fully stretched, almost in the centre of the moon. It was a beautiful moment. It reminded me of Batman and his batsign, the one that is seen above Gotham when Gotham or its citizens are in trouble. Though the moment lasted less than 1 second, it was more than enough to make me smile. The only thing that I missed then was my camera... Else, I would have captured that moment forever. :)

And my bus arrived at the bus stop, just as the full group of bats flew away. I did not miss the bus, nor did I miss what I wanted to see. Thank you GOD for making this possible for me.

Jaago sone walo...

The other day, I left from office at 11 pm. I was feeling very tired and wanted to reach home as soon as possible so that I could sleep peacefully. With no one for company, I was feeling very bored waiting alone at the bus stop. Finally the AC bus arrived and got in. I got a nice window seat to sit comfortably. After having verified my bus pass, I lost myself in thoughts - random thoughts about office, home, life and anything and everything that came to my mind. I did not realize when my mind transitioned from processing mode to standby mode. I was completely oblivious to my surrounding and to the motion of the bus too. I was fast asleep. Imagine the comfort of AC bus and sleeping in such a comfort... :) The only thing missing was a beautiful dream. But even without the dream, I was fast asleep.

I was woken up by the voice of driver shouting. I stirred in my sleep. I thought the bus driver must be shouting at a driver of some other vehicle. Generally, I do not bother to check the status of the participants involved in the verbal duel. But it was one of those rare moments when inquisitiveness got the better of me. I half-opened my eyes, trying to figure out where we were, before I could ascertain some information about the other party involved in the 'verbal' duel. When I looked out of the window, I could see some place, but was not able to figure out which area it was. Having been a hardcore Mumbaikar and travelled this route for quite some time, not able to identify the location was a blot on my global positioning capabilities and navigational skills. And it hurt... atleast then, it sure did hurt. However, I took solace in the fact that I was not able to identify the location because I had just woken up from deep sleep and needed a few seconds to come to terms with the surroundings. During all this, the driver's ranting continued. Meanwhile, I just happened to see a couple of guys get off the bus. The driver was looking behind and still ranting. I thought he must be sharing his frustration with the passengers and looking at the passengers to get some sort of approval for his rants. I looked around the bus and realized that I was the only passenger seated royally. By this time I was almost back in my senses. And I could clearly hear the rants of the driver and also figure out what they meant. It was then the driver shouted again - "Last stop aa gaya... utro abhi..." I looked around again to make sure that I was the only one in the bus, other than the driver and conductor and that this was indeed the last stop. My brain's GPS immediately identified the location. And I scampered to alight from the bus. After alighting from the bus, I stood at the bus stop for a few seconds to come to my senses fully. Having analyzed the situation, I crossed the road from underneath the flyover and went to the bus stop on the other side to catch a bus for home. I finally reached home about 35 - 40 minutes later than when I should have actually reached home.

So much for trying to reach home early and oversleeping in the bus!!!