Mithra

Roja was relieved when the result of her COVID test was negative. Although she had no symptoms and always took the necessary precautions while travelling, she was still nervous about the test. Now, she was officially free to roam Srinagar and it was indeed exciting. A car had been arranged for the duration of her stay by the owners of the homestay. The driver had already called her and informed that he would be waiting for her in the parking lot. Prepaid SIM from other states do not work in Srinagar. Only post-paid SIM cards and prepaid sim cards locally bought in Srinagar function in this beautiful city. Luckily, Roja had a post-paid SIM card, thanks to her father. He had strictly advised her to always have a post-paid connection. As she walked out of the Sheikh-ul-Alam Airport, she called the driver. Within a couple of minutes, a fair, clean-shaven handsome man appeared before her. ‘Namaste madamji, I am the driver that Wahib saab sent’, he said with a smile. ‘Namaste bhaiya. W...

  "Travel is never a matter of money, but of courage." - Paulo Coelho It was this quote which ultimately pushed Roja to book her flight tickets. After spending nearly, a year at home, she was desperate for a change. Working from home had kept her sane and driven her crazy in equal measures. COVID-19 had still not left the country but people began moving around. Still most of them made the travel only if they had no choice, otherwise they preferred not to take chances. This trip was necessary for her but for people around, it was utter foolishness. Well, they were not completely wrong in thinking so. She had decided to travel to Srinagar in the last week of December. Now what can possibly be so bad about visiting Srinagar in December? It might snow a little and it will be cold. So what? She could pack warm clothes to protect herself. The term “cold" could be relative. In absolute terms, the temperature could drop to -7°C. If a person was not well-protected, it could c...

  One Year of love!     "Marriage is all about growing together and falling in love all over again, every single day." After a marriage, three receptions and a honeymoon just before the first lockdown, we both began our life as husband and wife. We have practically lived with each other 24x7 for the past one year right through the COVID-19 pandemic. In the beginning of any marriage, couples have trouble in getting used to each other. But it is the love for one another which overpowers every other emotion. As days pass by, the wife gets habituated to the husband and vice versa. Subconsciously, we are always caring for each other which reflects in small gestures every day. It is certainly not the roller coaster ride as our courtship days when there was an adrenaline rush quite often. Marriage comes with a sense of calmness that is best experienced in each other’s arms at the end of the day. It is not a bed of roses either, because there will be disagreements and arg...