Certain images stay in our minds forever. It could be a much loved face or an important day of our life or at times a picture captured by the mind's eye while travelling to faraway lands. It could also be an image formed while listening to a story being told to us as children. An image formed by a 5 year old while she listened in rapt attention about the fairies and goblins, about the chocolate house in a magical forest, about english teas with hot scones and buttered sandwiches and the neverending beanstalk, whatever these images maybe they fail to remain just so..When they come back to us in the present, they bring along with them the smell of that particular sheet we were under while grandma recited the stories for us, or the fragrance of the signature talc she used after her bath..or even the smell of the fear mixed with anticipation we had felt as we waited for our board results. All vivid, all personal, all as non-fictional as the person right in front of us.
One such image that I hold close to my heart is that of a rainy day. A lazy and langarous afternoon in a house by the sea. Cosy and warm.. in direct contrast to the downpour outside the window. The heavy rain blurring the landscape. The sea, the towering waves, the sky, The not so distant cliffs, the rain all becoming one to the eye. Sitting by the window in that house, with a cup of coffee, a book, some music and a loved one. The rains splashing the windows, the faraway glint of the lighthouse beckoning lost ships to safety, the laughter at a shared joke, and the smell of nescafe. An image of love, of comfort, of trust and sharing..an image of a 'happy place'.
