Chocolate & Chilly

As I let go of her hand, a strange kind of smile found its way on my face, before transforming into a chuckle.

As if I had just discovered that I could fly; and why not, for my dreams were given the wings only a few moments ago.
As if I had just realised that I could run, coz those chains which I always thought had bound me, were nothing but my own imagination.
I felt free, even the air I took in now seemed to be filled with hope and belief in self.
I couldn’t even recall, when, was the last time I had felt like this.

‘What ?????’ she asked.
‘Nothing’ was only I could tell her, not trying to control my laughter.
‘Then what is making you laugh so much’ she asked not letting go of my hand, confounded by the sudden change in my expression.
Sudden, because only moments ago my mood was sombre & melancholic.

‘I’ll miss you’ I said and pulled ourselves together to hug, still laughing.

‘God!….. are you going to say something ??’

“Hmmm, sometimes, simple words just change the meaning of your life, giving it the direction, you always wanted to give, but could never muster enough courage to do so. You just did that for me. I think I found the ''chilly” !!!
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“Find the chilly inside you dear!!” were her parting words, meant for me.

The key to joy in life is the fine balance between chocolate and chilly. No “GYAN”, but whatever trivial follows is summary of what I have understood through experiences.

Chocolate is the tenderness or the goodness inside and around us but sometimes put on or exaggerated and chilly is the unpleasant or rather bitter yet sometimes true.

Any of it in excess spoils the taste, isn’t it ?
If you are a complete chocolate, you end up being rolled over and eaten.
In case you are a mouthful of chilly, who at all would care or rather dare to handle you !!

So, know yourselves first, before you let anyone else know you.
And never give in to what you do not believe in. Never ever compromise on your integrity.

If some one is expecting something from you which you can’t give, it’s their problem not yours, for they chose chilly for themselves when they decided to expect.
There are billions of people on this earth. And it is impossible to meet everyone’s expectations.
The key to failure as they say is trying to please everyone. So keep some chocolate for yourself before you decide to distribute it to others.

Noone can make you eat chilly unless you allow; i.e. noone can make you feel bad without your permission, and more often than not its we who stress ourselves when we flounder to be the chilly to the other person.

Lastly, always take your time before committing to anything. It is better to be late than be sorry forever.

In short, life is all about where and when do we decide to chose between chilly and chocolate for ourselves as well as others.
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Are u alright ???

‘Are u alright ?’ …. She asked as she waved her hand before my face.

It must have been around 3 – 4 minutes, since I was quiet. But I wasn’t quiet aware of it. Sitting before her, with my chin resting on my palm propped up on the table, I was lost, or so it seemed to her.

‘oh yeah! Why do you ask ?’
‘What happens to you suddenly?’ I could sense the concern in her voice …
“hey nothing, trust me”
‘huh !! but you shut off unexpectedly, when you were just full on minutes before, about your trip last week’
‘chill, there’s seriously nothing’
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And so it went for few more minutes, after which I was full on again just to be quiet again. I was meeting her after so long and I just wanted to get absorbed by that wonderful feeling, still something seemed amiss.
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As I sat in the auto, on my way back, wisps of thoughts began to float inside me.

But what is so wrong in being quiet? Why silence is considered an abnormality?
Why is it taken as a synonym of either egotism or stupidity? What is it that is so scary
about silence? Wonder what is there that makes people feel intimidated by it.
I mean, why a conversation can’t comprise of silence too, just as it comprises of all
the other essentials.

Is it really important for two people meeting after so long, to chat endlessly and may be sometimes mindlessly? Why can’t we revel in just being in each other’s company? What’s the rush about? Why does it have to always end up as a contest of who speaks the most ?

I guess too much has been made out of the term “communication skills”. And we just
seem to apply it everywhere. There kind of exists an insecurity within us. As if we’ll lose or will be left behind all alone, if we don’t speak. And barring those few closest of the pals, we constantly seem to be working on our PR while talking, and so consciously or unconsciously a part of us becomes what we never are .

But there are relations and there are moments, which I’m sure everyone of us must have experienced, where and when its just the listening which does the talking, which affirmates the bond and which makes the moments unforgettable.
Listening to the presence of the other which says ‘I’m there for you forever’. Listening to the heart which says ’whenever you’ll look for me you’ll find me right there’. Listening to those dreamy eyes which say ‘what would I have been without you !!’. And subsequently, allowing the smiles to embrace and touch to inspire.