The new woman in his life!

I thought I ruled his life till she came along.  She was awesome to begin with.  But I never thought he would fall for her smile in less than few split seconds - that too overnight.  Well, being his well wisher and his best buddy for life I went ahead and accepted their love.  I allowed it to blossom and spread its fragrance in his life.

While it was interesting to see the fondness, bonding and attachment for each other growing, i was drowning.  But their love for each other was beautiful.  He a narcoleptic turned into a night owl just to be with her as much as possible.  She too was enjoying his attention, no doubt. I was a silent spectator waiting for him to notice me as well.

How long the infatuation could last, I thought. It will wither with time I assumed and I waited.  I knew, he will come back to me someday or later.  She had not only overpowered him, she had made him dance to her tunes. She had mesmerised him completely. He was shackled in the powerful clutches of her innocence.

Till then I was his model.  Now it is her
Till then my stories filled his world.  Now she fills his world.
My wish used to be his command. Now she started commanding.

How conveniently I became an unknown part of his life from being an integral part.  I could not complain. How could I?  I knew, he was struggling and juggling between her and me.  No doubt she got the lion's share of his time, attention and love.

Nothing is constant, everybody assured me.  She proved me wrong.  I'm told, when swimming in high currents, don't go against it but along with it.  I watched them even closer.  Their love was so pure, unconditional and was beyond any boundaries. I stepped out and allowed them to enjoy. They continue to enjoy their space and I smile in silence.

Trek to Baanantimaari Betta

Any experience, good or bad is a great learning is what I have always lived by.  Any trek for me is a welcome opportunity to explore unknown territories and flex muscles to prove the body how strong the mind is.

I just wanted to trek.  Any place did not really matter.  That is the beauty when one is flexible. When I signed up with Basecamp for a trek to Madhugiri hills, I could not make it last week.  The one that followed is Baanantimari Betta.  This place is approximately 75 kms from Bangalore towards Kanakapura.

We were 5 of us - the trekkers who had signed up for this journey, our guide along with our driver who hit the road early morning at 6.30.  The weather was far than pleasant and perfect for a trek.  Our group was quite unique.  A very interesting outdoor family consisting of an enthusiastic couple, their 2 wonderful daughters aged 13 and 16.

When we reached the foothill of the mountain, it looked calm, serene and inviting.  Any first timer would always doubt on how do I go about climbing this mountain when there is no path.  Trekking is all about making way through unknown territories.  Having a good guide is a must.  We started the trek heading towards a narrow path that led us into the forest.  Slowly but steadily, we kept going into the forest.  The path was not a very easy one.  Sometimes the terrain was plane, then it was uphill with rocks, then it was thick forest and then it was like a cave.  Our group kept walking while admiring all the beauty the place was offering us.

Interestingly, the forest does not have any trees that bears neither fruits or flowers except one tree which had a beautiful flower on the path way.  Our guide warned us not to venture into touching or plucking it as it is poisonous.  No wonder the flower is still intact we thought.  We got to know this flower is called as "Tiger Claws" and it looked really beautiful.

We continued our journey and it took 3 hours for to reach to the top of the mountain.  The view was just amazing.  From top, everything down looked beautiful, non-chaotic and insignificant.  Felt so good to be there..  We all sat there and had our lunch.  The 6 strangers had in no time become friends and we were sharing our lunch with each other.  We soaked ourselves amid nature and the silence. We just sat there and did not want to leave.

For me it t was that moment of quietness which I had been longing for.  The bruises on the legs did not matter.  Waking up early to start for the trek did not matter.  Staying away from home did not matter. Nothing mattered.  That moment was the present for me.  I soaked in it as much and nothing else mattered.

Well everything has to end.. and we had to start our journey back with a heavy heart. At 12.30 pm we started trekking back.  On our way back, it was a different experience.  Generally in life going up is always difficult and coming down is easy.  But in trekking coming down had its own challenges.  We need to watch our steps.  We can't hurry. We need to walk horizontal and keep our feet firm on the ground as the plain could be slippery.  We walked in line like ants and ensured we followed our guide.  We would warn the person behind us if we saw or felt anything unusual.

The trek downhill was almost peaceful till I found a plastic toy kind of a thing on our way.  I was upset how some people have left some plastic behind and shared the thought with my guide.  My guide looked at it and said it is a Scorpio.  My feet literally turned cold.  It was a dark green scorpion which was idle and even waited till our fellow trekkers went ahead and clicked its pictures.

From then on wards, it was a lesson for me to be even more alert.  We hit the base in the next 2 hours and 30 minutes and headed towards Bangalore.

When I started, I was asking myself why am I doing this?  I had some reasons.  I wanted to test my physical stamina.  After all the yoga and walking that I've been doing I wanted to see how far I can exert my body to take some pressure.  My second reason being, I wanted to be with nature from health perspective.  Go to a place where there is not much of invasion of plastic and pollution.  Also my 3rd reason being, my quiet promise I made myself that I should go for 2-3 treks in 2014. :)

The reason could be any..what I got is something beyond all this.  Looking forward to many more.