"It's fire so there's smoke"
It was well past noon and I was getting hungry. I didn't carry lunch to work so I had to peel myself off the chair and head out. One jacket after another, gloves, a beanie and a hoodie - I could now face the winter day. Someone could also hit me with a bat and I probably wouldn't feel anything. Or so I thought, as I cringed against the wind, while imagining a bowl of hot soup and a giant cookie. I was on a mission.
I was just outside the yard where they had the fire pits. I always made sure to take a detour by the fire and gather some heat. I love it there - with an ice-skating rink, facilities for curling and a shuffle board by the warmth. But today, there was almost no activity. There was just some remaining smoke from the pit and I went over to stand by it. Along with me was a mother trying to feed her child while he played with the curling equipment, some tourists and an elderly man. Nobody really said anything. A girl walked by and asked why there was no fire today, to no one in particular. The man said that the students from the Science Center were bothered by the smoke, so the officials decided to make the fire only at 5PM. He then tore some bread from his lunch and laughed halfheartedly.
"A lot of people like the fire you know? So many people have lunch here everyday. But what can you do, right?", he repeated. "It's fire so there's smoke. And some kids care about the smoke, right?", and he laughed again. The girl smiled politely, said thanks and left. Shortly after, I left too.
It was holi, and I didn't realize that until I saw my phone with "Happy Holi" messages. There were pictures with holi colors, my friends having fun, color burst crackers, food and the Holika bon-fire.
I know it's very melodramatic (sorry), but I thought about the fire from earlier. Both of them, with different purposes - one for warmth on a winter day and one as a celebration for the victory of good over evil. There are probably other fires too, some accidental or even causing destruction. And then I thought about all that subsequent smoke.
I was on the bus, on my way back home and looking for earphones in my bag. It was tangled in an orange notebook. I love that notebook and take it everywhere I go. It was a present so that I would be able to write my thoughts, lists and other "writer things". It's been over a year and it's empty.
Everyday people spend their lives sticking to routine. Or worse, sometimes even without that. They wake up-do something inconsequential-go to bed. With purposeless smoke dousing the fire of motivation within them. They want to do plenty of things, and then don't do them. They are not happy, not inspired and constantly tired. They use "busy" as an excuse for being lazy. A lot of times, they is me.
So I took out a pencil and wrote into my notebook "It's fire, so there's smoke."And well, that was a beginning.
I was just outside the yard where they had the fire pits. I always made sure to take a detour by the fire and gather some heat. I love it there - with an ice-skating rink, facilities for curling and a shuffle board by the warmth. But today, there was almost no activity. There was just some remaining smoke from the pit and I went over to stand by it. Along with me was a mother trying to feed her child while he played with the curling equipment, some tourists and an elderly man. Nobody really said anything. A girl walked by and asked why there was no fire today, to no one in particular. The man said that the students from the Science Center were bothered by the smoke, so the officials decided to make the fire only at 5PM. He then tore some bread from his lunch and laughed halfheartedly.
"A lot of people like the fire you know? So many people have lunch here everyday. But what can you do, right?", he repeated. "It's fire so there's smoke. And some kids care about the smoke, right?", and he laughed again. The girl smiled politely, said thanks and left. Shortly after, I left too.
It was holi, and I didn't realize that until I saw my phone with "Happy Holi" messages. There were pictures with holi colors, my friends having fun, color burst crackers, food and the Holika bon-fire.
I know it's very melodramatic (sorry), but I thought about the fire from earlier. Both of them, with different purposes - one for warmth on a winter day and one as a celebration for the victory of good over evil. There are probably other fires too, some accidental or even causing destruction. And then I thought about all that subsequent smoke.
I was on the bus, on my way back home and looking for earphones in my bag. It was tangled in an orange notebook. I love that notebook and take it everywhere I go. It was a present so that I would be able to write my thoughts, lists and other "writer things". It's been over a year and it's empty.
Everyday people spend their lives sticking to routine. Or worse, sometimes even without that. They wake up-do something inconsequential-go to bed. With purposeless smoke dousing the fire of motivation within them. They want to do plenty of things, and then don't do them. They are not happy, not inspired and constantly tired. They use "busy" as an excuse for being lazy. A lot of times, they is me.
So I took out a pencil and wrote into my notebook "It's fire, so there's smoke."And well, that was a beginning.
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