Tuesday, June 27, 2006

A quick tale 146

Neighbour

Each time I look at your washing line, I wonder how you manage to spread your laundry out so tidily. Every item of clothing stretched across the line and pinched at the ends with plastic pegs. Smooth and without a crease. As if you had ironed them before hanging them out to dry. This morning I noticed an extra vest along with the usual. It hung limp from the clips that held it. Curiously resembling a deflated balloon. Whose is it? Your father-in-law's, perhaps? How long will he be staying? I noticed that you had brought your silk saree out for an airing last week. Is there a wedding in the family? Are you going to be wearing your favourite mango-coloured blouse again? Remember to mend it because I saw a small tear near the sleeve last time.

Now that the rains have stopped, I hope you will start washing the blankets and pillow covers. They must've gone musty from the damp season. Do you still have the white sheets with tiny blue flowers on it? I liked them so much that I went to the store the very next day to buy the same ones for me. But they were all sold out. They're probably the only blues in your house. Because I know you favour reds and oranges. Except for that pale green chiffon saree that I saw you pick up from the washing line on the 23rd of last month.

Your little ones are growing up so fast. It wasn't long ago that I saw squares of cotton cloth being hung out to dry. Already, there are school uniforms. Do you ever look at my clothesline and wonder about me? Do you notice that there are no tiny frocks or little pants fluttering alongside the man's shirt and the woman's saree? You are probably too busy to indulge in idle speculation. Which reminds me, it was so windy yesterday that one of your handkerchieves was blown across the terrace and landed on ours. Is it alright if I kept it?

25 comments:

neha vish said...

I absolutely love this one. There's so much of us wandering about on trivial details.

The ramblings of a shoe fiend said...

this is my favourite story of yours i think. just beautiful.

Anonymous said...

Oh my God.. that was beautiful. Lovely. Ohhhhhhh

B o o said...

Your stories embarass the hell out of me sometimes. This is one of them! ;) And the previous one too, until the last sentence that is! I breathed a sigh of relief after that! :) *Oh God! Do I have write it here and make this more embarassing? Well, what the heck!*

Kowshic said...

This one was really close to real. Me and my thatha used to indulge in such speculations based on grocery lists at the nearby stores.

Suguna said...

oh man! you are suuuper.

D LordLabak said...

what a vetti officer!;-)

Anu said...

Just lovely! Reminds me of good ol' days when my friend and I used to sit at a fast food joint and weave stories and speculate of everyone there :)

Only your QT is far better!

Unknown said...

stunning, tender and heart tugging
you never cease to amaze me

Lidia said...

very clever!

Houseowner said...

very very nice...

cheers!
ramya

Bishwanath Ghosh said...

Getting addicted to your posts: each better than the other!

kaaju katli said...

Brilliant! Really :)

kaaju katli said...

Brilliant! Really :)

Dadoji said...

Reminds me of a famous Satyajit Ray tale and another scary movie starring Robin Williams. Beautiful but scary potency.

Shashi Iyer said...

it's lovely to find a piece ridden with so many details. it exudes ur deeply felt passion for observation, or imagination, if that's what this is.

Anonymous said...

Back after a break ... and find you are in fine fettle. Your last few posts are the sort of stuff I keep recommending your blog to others for.

hari said...

That one was just fabulous Ammani. Expressions just dance to your tunes and the language is on a song when you use it.

Themadi said...

is it alright if I kept this one?:)

Lovely.

Anonymous said...

was good fun untill the last line

>>Is it alright if I kept it?

made me so sad

Ardra said...

I stand in my balcony- and watch- the clothslines- how mothers accompany their kids to the school vans that comes by the colony park- the waving of goodbyes to the office bound husbands...the last moment reminders-
ahh...reading this one sounded os familiar- except that until now I had browsed my own thoughts so absent mindedly- reading them in words- was a different experience- some kind of awakening!

Anonymous said...

Beautiful story.. beautiful perspective

What's in a name? said...

very nice...i love the way ur imagination works extra time!

b v n said...

hi..there was a link to this post from another blog...loved this post..nicely done !!

Prats said...

The entire woman populace in one go...great read...
Like dthe way you've envied every bit out here....and did the handkerchief stay with u???