Our trip is winding to a close. Tomorrow at 5:30 am we will hop in a taxi and with any luck be taken to a train station where we will be whisked away to Cochin. We’ll check our bags at the airport and then spend the day wandering around Cochin. By 8:30pm we will be on a plane to Mumbai and from there it will be only a few hours before we are on our way to California.
Both dad and I have had such an amazing time here. We’ve been smothered with the generosity of spirit that permeates every interaction. We’ve been overwhelmed by the poverty, and color, and olfactory presence of this place. We have found peace and calm and the ability to live in a moment. It is this last gift that I believe I will carry the longest. It is this gift that allows me to sit in this familiar internet “cafe” and type this article as if tomorrow will never come.
I suppose I could allow myself to think about how I might feel tomorrow, as we speed away from this little slice of paridise. I suppose I might predict a sense of loss and regret. Instead I’m going to allow India’s lesson its due. I am here. Right now I am grateful, and tomorrow will be rich with its own moments.