The first time I am in my new office, in my new home in Bangalore, the city which I have recently moved to.
The first time when I am sleeping on the floor, on some thin mattresses, and getting achy all over. (My stuff has'nt moved yet)
The first time when I am living in a city where people do not speak Hindi, or English
The first time when I am forced to stay silent for hours, since I can't talk to my domestic help, my watchman, my veggie wala, or even the milkwallah
The first time when I am using the sign language and discovering that it is actually pretty adequate
The first time I am waking up in the early hours, with the sounds of courtyards being swept clean by "kharata jhaadus"
The first time I am seeing roads lined with flowering trees
The first time I am sniffing the morning air to take my fill of the sweet scent of jasmine and some other flower I know not the name of
The first time when I am being greeted by the aroma of freshly ground coffee as I walk downstairs to dump garbage
The first time when I am hearing temple bells as I drop my daughter to school
The first time when I am watching where I walk, lest I step over some Rangoli
The first time when I am hearing the cries of "Sopu" - the cry of a street vendor selling herbs and flowers. Did not know herbs could be sold this way
The first time when I am seeing several senior men and women guffawing over a cup of coffee, as they practice the morning ragas in the local park, and me wondering why I am not at that stage of my life yet
The first time when I feel as if I have come home. And this for a city I have come to, for the first time.
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