Seasons play a vital role on our
moods and based on it, people have their preference of seasons. AKA their
favorite season/seasons. Even though it’s sunny and hot to the point that it
can kill you, and tortures you till you could break yourself, I love summer, especially
summer evenings. I grew up in Gujarat. And generally Gujarat is windy state,
where coolest wind blows in winter from north that freezes you up and hottest
wind blows in summer from south-west which almost roasts you. But evening winds
are always comforting in summer. They mostly remain moderate. Also summer days
are very long in Gujarat. Nights become dark at around 8 pm. Pretty Long Days. Huh.
Summer usually starts from March
to June here. So generally I spent good
amount of summer days in my college, staying in hostel with friends. Those were
the carefree days with the worries only of some particular subject or a girl or
a boy, and in my case a particular faculty. So come to the point I spent most
of the twilight time, when going out of your home doesn’t kill you, with friends
taking leisure walk outside of my hostel. After dinner at 7.30 I and my friends especially
Y, L, H and HH were used to take this walks. Sometimes we had company of V, D
or some other friend.
My college was located on an aptly
named college road with some other five different colleges so residential areas
around the road were bustling with students.
On a walk one can meet their classmates or some just some small talk
friends. My college was the largest one and was the last college on the road.
Perpendicular to the road a canal used to flow just 50 meter further from my
college, along with a dirt road parallel to the canal. (See image below). Also
on the road, further crossing the canal A Hanuman temple was there which used
to get crowded on every Saturday.
Now all those twilight and all those
walks have many stories but not on a particular day. Each walk has something
unique to tell or sometimes nothing to say. There isn’t a particular day that
has something extraordinary tale. Sometimes we met a college friend whom we
don’t meet in college cause he doesn’t come to college. Or Sometimes we saw a
couple from our college crossing the gate of the college and disappear behind
the trees where none can see them (God knows for what :-D ). Sometimes we saw
college football team coming from their practice, all sweaty and wet in their
shorts. It was a relief for my sore eyes. But most days we were just alone,
talking in ourselves, laughing, ewwing*. And that was it.
On very rare occasions we used to
go on the dirt road along with the canal. Mid road there was a fall in the
canal, like a small waterfall. At that point the road had some stone walls like
dividers so no one can fall into the canal. We used to sit on those dividers
till it becomes dark or till police comes and asks us to leave because in their
eye, every person sitting there was a potential suicider. While I was within
the moment with my friends creating memories with them, I was also not there.
It was the time of day which I hated the most along with my habit of thinking
only about myself 24/7. I wasn’t out to them so I was unable to tell them very
core feelings of mine. I always remained in a way out of the group. I knew that
but I just couldn’t help it. I was busy balancing my “in closet” and “out of the
closet” life. I always felt guilty about it, for being aloof. But then
again days passed and twilights came and again we went for a walk and again I
was the same.
Well, that’s it. This post is like a movie without a plot (most
movies around the world). But I would like to thank my friends for giving me
their time and memories to look at and smile at. I don’t remember our talks or
the jokes that I made as I was the hilarious one but I do remember that I was
happy because my friends were with me in those twilights. And I am grateful for
that. For that I love them. At least some of them.
*Ewwing: An Expression where your
reaction to the most of the things are just “ewww, that’s gross”
