I have got used to Nagpur

I remember reading this in my Hindi textbook in school. I think its in some chapter between standard VI to VIII. The example is of a train journey. The author explains how at every station as new people enter a compartment, there is a lot of resistance, often the passengers who enter a compartment stand for a while, as there is no place to sit and there is a lot of general resistance to their presence. Gradually as the train moves, some of them are offered seats, people shift to accommodate, they become friendly with same passengers and often, when its time to leave people exchange address/contact information and ask each other to keep in touch. Another common feature of such interactions is that nobody keeps in touch or contacts after that. The same passengers make new friends in their next journey.

So much for a small piece of information, I think I have gotten used to Nagour and life here. I shifted here 2 months ago. Suddenly realized how strange life in a small city can be. No friends to go out with, no family to come back home to crib or fight with. No public transport after seven- thirty. After eight months in Mumbai, the lifestyle in this city came as a shock. The fact that people are laid back and relaxed while I wanted to put a lot of fight for my career did not help things at all.

But then I found my own way of coping with things. So what if I can't go out for dinner, if the absence of company, I realized I could have dinner while conversing with people on the phone, Bad substitute but still better than spending all evenings and all weekends alone. Life has started looking better as I get used to having a relaxed time. So in Nagpur you wind up early enough to catch an auto back in decent time. And you plan your morning meetings late enough for people to reach office. Last time when I came back from Mumbai, Nagpur felt like home.

And for all those who are helping to survive this city, the people who keep me company though the long phonecalls/ chats, the lady downstairs who makes my tiffin, the really nice neighbours who ensure that I have drinking water every day, I know there would promises to keep in touch But then life moves on. There would be another city, new neighbours, new friends.