From Shillong, With Love

I go to the hills when my heart is lonely

To laugh like a brook as it trips and falls over stones on its way

The hills fill my heart with the sound of music

Yes I look and I wait and I listen
For one more sound
One more thing that the hills might say...

There are two places on earth where a man wants to lay down his roots. One, where his heart is and the other, where his soul is. My soul belongs to the green hills of Meghalaya (meaning, the abode of clouds). Don't ask me why.  There is no valid explanation of this strange pull. (A la` happy mountain goat in past life?) So I filled in every corner of my lungs with the balmy mountain air, just the way I soaked in my mind with the beautiful sight.

This wasn't my first visit to Shillong. But each visit to the magical hills fascinated me more than the last. There was I, at the backseat of the car, making little noises of pleasure and delight—like a little kid encountering magic for the very first time. And before I realized, I was humming, "The hills are alive with the sound of music" In my high-on-mountain air situation, its hard not to transcend to Julie Andrew's dreamy avatar, Maria.

But just driving down the windy roads was not enough. I wanted more. And then the gods said, "Ye shall have more". It started drizzling. Now there is one thing you should know about an earthy Venusian. When you add rain to the already mesmerizing nature, never ever expect us to sit tight in the car. And my dad rightly knew when he had to stop the car and let the wild child out. In record time, I was out of the car, sprinting across the field, shoes removed, jeans folded higher and jumped right into the shallow stream. And oh, it felt so good! With the chilly stream water tickling my feet and the raindrops playfully piercing my skin, it wouldn't be wrong to say that nature was courting me like an ardent lover. I could feel it in my bones that good times are here. Came back home and found my visa to Scotland got approved, much earlier than expected. So three cheers to more hills and highlands!

My rendezvous made me alive once again, even though I now suffer from fever and cold. But boy, is it not worth the hypnotic moments??