My Best Friend

Few days back I had mentioned an very famous essay ‘Umbrella Morals’ in one of my blog posts and now I am back again with an another tale. This time it is completely mine. These days I prefer to call my umbrella as my best friend because the showers here are as eerie as the folks of this town. The actions and reactions are lifelessly slow and silent, nevertheless sweet. So are the rains, beautiful yet troubling! I am not yet used to any of this. And an umbrella is the only thing that can safeguard me from some perish is what I feel.

Last evening not very surprisingly the fragile black one of mine happened to give up all its efforts to save me and decided to deceive me during my hard times. It turned upside down breaking here and there beyond repair, thanks to the winds and rains this place is blessed with. I had actually made a bad choice when I bought it for I was new to this place and I did not know what works here, rather what does not! And a day without an umbrella here is like living in a desert without an oasis! So today I was forced to go on a  umbrella hunt in the Hampanakatta market where I found this:

Liked it? Blue and yellow are my favourite colours. Very floral I know but for some strange reasons umbrellas are a fashion statement in Mangalore. These long kinds are in fact known as ‘Ajjana Kode’ [Grandfather’s Umbrella!] but times now have changed and every other girl here owns it. It is strong and sturdy and therefore serves as a protection weapon maybe, enough to bash up a gang! Meanwhile I am wondering how long it shall last in these grieving months of ill weather, I am just hoping that at least this one wishes to stay as my best friend!

And this is what my bona fide best friend whom I fondly call Calvin had to say after looking at the picture I mailed him:

“Ayyo too girly! I won’t be able to use it if I ever come to Mangalore!”

 Calvin says 

'True friends are hard to come by'

And all this Hobbes has to say is 

'Best friends are harder to please !!!'

-R.