by NINAD JOG
I don't know about you, but I get absolutely thrilled when someone hails me in a public place and the person turns out to be a friend or colleague whom I didn't plan on meeting and had never imagined I'd run into.
My thoughts then run as follows: What a supreme coincidence that we happened to be in the same place at the same time! They noticed me! That too in a crowded place. They more than made up for my inattention! I count for something! I feel loved.
It may be a commonplace occurrence for you, but it doesn't happen to me all that often. So imagine my delight when it happened not once yesterday, but twice in a single day. Twice, I tell you, twice!
***
"Ninad!" cried someone when I was fishing savory foods from the salad bar at the Korean lunch place near my office. I turned and noticed an Indian colleague was also doing the same. "I came here before you" he informed me. "I saw you entering."
I was a little embarrassed, as I could have easily asked him out at the office. I used to in the past, ere I came to know that this particular cafe was not his first choice although it was my hands-down favorite.
Both of us had originally planned to take a carryout and eat at our office desks, for there's little to be gained by sitting by yourself in a cafe. But having found each other, we gamely sat at a table in the cafe and chatted about err.. same-sex marriage becoming legal in a majority of U.S. states, of all things!
***
"Ninad!" came another voice as I was rushing down the escalator at a rapid clip at Rosslyn metro station in the evening on my way home. I looked to my right, and there, on the parallel escalator was a friend. Not just any friend, mind you, but the one who is an avid reader of my books, the one whose office is but two blocks from my own.
I stopped dead in my tracks, positively thrilled. He asked me if was taking the Silver Line. I said Yes; he said so was he. We started chatting with great gusto. But oddly enough, the distance between us began to increase -- I felt myself shrinking from him :-(
Luckily I identified the cause and made amends forthwith: I climbed two steps up my escalator. His escalator was moving a tad bit slower than mine, probably because it was more heavily loaded. There, simple fix!
Once we reached the platform, I looked at the signboard and learned that the next train would arrive within a minute. I got all nervous and edgy. My friend guessed my discomfort and asked me if I wanted to walk a little further along the platform.
"Let's walk right up to the front!" I announced. "I like to get into the first car, as it's the least crowded."
I should've at least had the decency to frame the order as a polite question, but I was too agitated to think straight.
He agreed, and off we went. We boarded the train, remained standing, and chatted all the way until he got off at his station. He didn't have a chance to read the big fat book he was carrying, and I didn't read the slim little novel that was tucked into my backpack until he left and I plunked myself down into a comfortable window seat.
I'm not sure if he'd be comfortable if his identity were revealed, otherwise I'd have told you in a heartbeat that it was Spence.
Needless to say, the unexpected encounters truly made my day. Two in a single day, mind you - two! I can scarcely believe that they happened.
I don't know about you, but I get absolutely thrilled when someone hails me in a public place and the person turns out to be a friend or colleague whom I didn't plan on meeting and had never imagined I'd run into.
My thoughts then run as follows: What a supreme coincidence that we happened to be in the same place at the same time! They noticed me! That too in a crowded place. They more than made up for my inattention! I count for something! I feel loved.
It may be a commonplace occurrence for you, but it doesn't happen to me all that often. So imagine my delight when it happened not once yesterday, but twice in a single day. Twice, I tell you, twice!
***
"Ninad!" cried someone when I was fishing savory foods from the salad bar at the Korean lunch place near my office. I turned and noticed an Indian colleague was also doing the same. "I came here before you" he informed me. "I saw you entering."
I was a little embarrassed, as I could have easily asked him out at the office. I used to in the past, ere I came to know that this particular cafe was not his first choice although it was my hands-down favorite.
Both of us had originally planned to take a carryout and eat at our office desks, for there's little to be gained by sitting by yourself in a cafe. But having found each other, we gamely sat at a table in the cafe and chatted about err.. same-sex marriage becoming legal in a majority of U.S. states, of all things!
***
"Ninad!" came another voice as I was rushing down the escalator at a rapid clip at Rosslyn metro station in the evening on my way home. I looked to my right, and there, on the parallel escalator was a friend. Not just any friend, mind you, but the one who is an avid reader of my books, the one whose office is but two blocks from my own.
I stopped dead in my tracks, positively thrilled. He asked me if was taking the Silver Line. I said Yes; he said so was he. We started chatting with great gusto. But oddly enough, the distance between us began to increase -- I felt myself shrinking from him :-(
Luckily I identified the cause and made amends forthwith: I climbed two steps up my escalator. His escalator was moving a tad bit slower than mine, probably because it was more heavily loaded. There, simple fix!
Once we reached the platform, I looked at the signboard and learned that the next train would arrive within a minute. I got all nervous and edgy. My friend guessed my discomfort and asked me if I wanted to walk a little further along the platform.
"Let's walk right up to the front!" I announced. "I like to get into the first car, as it's the least crowded."
I should've at least had the decency to frame the order as a polite question, but I was too agitated to think straight.
He agreed, and off we went. We boarded the train, remained standing, and chatted all the way until he got off at his station. He didn't have a chance to read the big fat book he was carrying, and I didn't read the slim little novel that was tucked into my backpack until he left and I plunked myself down into a comfortable window seat.
I'm not sure if he'd be comfortable if his identity were revealed, otherwise I'd have told you in a heartbeat that it was Spence.
Needless to say, the unexpected encounters truly made my day. Two in a single day, mind you - two! I can scarcely believe that they happened.
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