In the daily hustle- bustle of life, the scintillating conversations over fast-food and a light banter of office shit is usually good enough to keep me amused, at least most of the times, here in this crazy Silicon valley of India.

However, there is something that is always lacking here.

The city does not have a river.

And while it may seem trivial to most people, even to people from my city, its actually not. I mean, you may have all the razzmatazz around, with corporate parks and beautiful lawns and pubs galore, but can any of this match the experience of sitting alongside a pulsating and powerful river. And this is not a banter of my city vs yours but rather a prologue to the lovely rivers that have often been under-appreciated.

Because guys, don’t you miss the river.

I do. Those lazy waters teeming with weeds and pooja flowers and idols, with birds flying above. And when sitting alongside a lazy day, you can actually smell sunshine as the waters glisten up like jewels of Nature. Far away, you can hear the noise of the traffic flowing through the city, like thin streams of river.

In the evenings, when the city gets lit with yellow and white lights you can see the river beaming with their reflections like a festive evening, a panorama of dreams across its wide expanse. The sound of the temple bells and cool rays of the moon add a visual effect as well.

There is something special about them.

And whenever I am in a dilemma or hit a roadblock in life, I come here. The sense of calmness amidst the lively riverbank teeming with people, birds and the shining sky, is a wonderful oxymoron to experience. And, far away you can hear the noise of the heavy traffic flowing through the city and the cantilever.

The evenings are a romance in itself. Especially when the city gets lit with yellow and white lights you can see the river beaming with their reflections like a festive evening, a panorama of dreams across its shores. Almost like a new age bride, with the color changing cantilever giving her a character of her own. The water though muddy, gets sparkling, once again accentuating your eyes. Standing by the shores and just observing the little waves pass by often gives a sense of déjà vu.

And like what is the trend today, you may ask- What is the take-away from this? Then here it is-

We often forget the “wow” factor in our lives around. We take far too many things for granted. Is magic only confined to fairy tales? No. from the blinking of an eye to a beautiful smile, from the birds that fly to the flower that blossoms, everything is so very magical, if we could just pay a little more attention. Standing by the side of this beauty, it is this magic that I got to see every day (for free).Sitting and watching its infinite waves helps you contemplate, lending you a perspective on the finer things that actually matter in your lives.

But not just by the eternal beauty but by her capability of acceptance, we got to learn from her. She has multiple roles to play by. Sometimes a beautiful woman, sometimes a mother, a grand river and sometimes a waste carrier and other times flowing by mindlessly over centuries as if Time was a constant.

However, we have never given a shit for it, once our needs are met by her. Maybe because we don’t appreciate things that are free. The river probably, would be remembered only in the stories and traditions. And I think she doesn’t care either.

To conclude, when I went back to the city, I fell in love with the Ganges, yet again!!!