the holiness of church and the unholiness of street-cricket

I wake up...its 6 am...Sunday morning...got to be at church by 8 am...feeling full of energy, decide to take a walk...walk straight down the road in front of my house, past Shiban's house, past the Kowloon and keep going till I reach a wall...touch the wall and start walking back...stop off at Annapoorna and have sambhar vada...eating food alone has its own charm about it, not least coz you can enjoy it fully...walk back, enter the house, say good morning to Inna...talk to her about the previous evening's prayer meeting and about my Christmas in UK...go upstairs...its 7:30 am...Amma and Appa are still in bed...Ammamma and Thatha have just woken up...to be at church on time, 6 of us have to have baths and dress up in 15 minutes...I relax when I realise its India and not the UK...time isn't as precious...we get to church at 8:30...


I see that my favourite seat on the left corner of the last row is empty and hurry to sit there...started sitting there when I was 15, with other boys from Sunday school and made it my home till I left to the UK at 22...settle down and focus on the service...we have a new Pastor, he seems alright...sing hymns from Golden Bells and enjoy the sheer meaningfulness of the lyrics...worship songs that we sing at my church in UK are nice, but nothing comes closer to expressing my deepest spiritual feelings as hymns...look around and see how beautiful the church is, the building and the garden...its very much like a typical classical church in the UK, but it seems even more beautiful coz its in the midst of India...the power of contrast

the service ends and I see Jerene coming to say hi...congratulate her on her engagement the previous day and ask her if she's excited about her wedding that coming Saturday...Natalie's parents come up and say hi...I enquire about Natalie and we discuss which particular tree in the garden Natalie and I climbed after service every week, when I was 4...Vasantha Aunty comes up and tells me she's brought out a book on Neural Networks, published by Springer-Link...wow ! I tell her I would retire if I were her...Mrs. Karunakaran comes up and we talk...her daughter was born on the same day as me and her son has the same name as me...



its time to go to the Youth meeting that my friend Ajay is organising...they've already started singing when I arrive...about 20 people, mostly college students...Ajay seems in command and is doing a good job...we go into a time of worship, led by Ajay...and then, Vasanth gives a message on the characteristics of immaturity...he is clear and powerful, he's thought his message through, believes what he says and says it with confidence...he speaks straight to the heart...I didn't know he was this good...later, my Dad tells me the company he heads is known for its integrity...quite encouraging to see Christians effectively put their faith into practise...the meeting ends and I go speak to Prithveen, probably my oldest friend in church...have known him as far back as I can remember...


the people start a volleyball game nearby, I excuse myself and leave coz Sudhakar Uncle is coming to lunch...walk to the station...have a tender-coconut water on the way...is there a better drink while walking in the scorching sun ? I reach the bus-station, get into the bus and buy my ticket...3 rupees...at least, something is still cheap in India...settle into my seat and again reflect on how the bus looks dirty but feels clean...get down and go home...


Sudhakar Uncle and family have already arrived, but thankfully havn't started eating....lunch is served and what a lunch ! chicken biriyani and pachadi, tomato chutney and mint chutney, carrot halwa...if I was to choose one non-tangible thing to take back to the UK, it would be the ability to make Inna's chicken biriyani...the ability to mix the spices in perfect proportion, so that each can be tasted independently, yet is inextricably part of the whole taste...the richness of the flavour that expresses itself with its smell as much as its taste...the sheer lusciousness of the meat...the momentary climax of the taste-buds as they realise how lucky they are...oh, glorrrrious food !

conversation is about life in the UK...when Sudhakar Uncle was my age, he also lived in the UK and remembers it fondly...last year, he visited the UK and we spent a weekend together...we talk about that weekend, how we hogged in the 'all you can eat for 5 pounds' place and how the waiters seemed relieved to see us leave...and how I was so stuffed with food after it that it was difficult to walk, so had to sit under a tree for a bit...its 2:30 pm and they leave...I start making calls to my friends to organise street-cricket in front of my house...

we've been playing street-cricket in front of my house for 19 years...more than anything else, street-cricket has characterised my childhood...street-cricket is a unique form of cricket and cricket on every different street has its own unique characteristics...every street has its own set of trees from which balls can deflect, bushes where balls routinely get lost and houses whose cranky owners refuse to give the ball back if it goes in...some streets have particularly curious aspects...for instance, our street has a walled-in area with a banana plantation...and sometimes, we have a drunken dhobi lying directly on the cover-drive line and doesn't like to be hit by the ball...and so, the range of possible strokes on every street is limited and every street-cricketer chooses his own range of high-scoring areas and improvises strokes to get the ball into those areas...however, his opposition know his game inside-out and set fields accordingly...street-cricket is a challenge

street-cricket is also about fighting....like field cricket, its about the fight within yourself and the fight between bat-and-ball...but its also about the fight with your team-mates about who gets to bat first, its about the fight with your opposition about a close run-out and its about the fight with your cranky neighbours when the ball goes into their house...finally, its about fighting with the thorn-bushes when the ball is firmly in their grip...

street-cricket is also about improvisation...like field cricket, its about improvising strokes to play to different balls, but its also about improvising a structure out of available materials to construct a set of stumps...its about improvising rules to prevent the balls going into houses and about improvising the order of batsmen and bowlers so that everyone gets a fair chance (the person that bats first bowls last)

it isn't difficult to see how playing street-cricket can make you street-smart

my friends arrive and we have two games...we're 25, but we act like we're 15 - both in our enthusiasm and our immaturity...I bat well in one game, bowl crap in both and notice that my batting has improved after playing in the bowler-friendly conditions of UK...

after the game, we share a big bottle of Pepsi and a friend invites me over to watch a movie...we go to his house, start the movie, start a lively conversation and completely ignore the movie...this friend is the most intelligent of all my friends, the most lazy, the most lucky and the most volatile...we talk about how he got into NLSIU, the best law school in India, and then into the best law firm in India...we talk about how he gave up a salary of 1,00,000 rupees per month and quit his job coz he wanted to do something more meaningful...wildlife conservation...that aspect of him hasn't changed, he always was a bit idealistic...

but another aspect of him has changed...a 180 degree turn...he used to be grounded and mature...he once told me he isn't silly or immature enough to derive shallow satisfaction from something as trivial as drinking with his friends...now, his room looks like something out of a gangster movie...beer bottles on the floor, an ashtray full of cigarette butts and the lingering smell of cigarette smoke...he rolls a joint and starts puffing...I've tried hard to understand how somebody so clever can also be so stupid ? my only theory so far is that all the attention from the St. Joseph's girls that came to Stanes in 11 std. got to his head and made him feel infallible...or is it something even deeper ? could it be that he's trying to fill up the God-sized hole in his heart with cigarettes, alcohol and marijuana ? I decide to give him a Bible before I leave...

I come back home and put on the TV...NDTV is showing Sachin Tendulkar meeting and training with the National Security Guards...he earnestly emphasises that the NSG and not him, are the 'real heroes' of the country...how lucky my generation is to have a role-model like Sachin...has there ever been a successful sportsman who was more humble, mature and committed to his country? its 11 pm...I realise I havn't yet called one of my good friends...I call and she picks up...warms hi's...I feel like walking, so take the house-keys, open the door, go down the stairs, unlatch the gate and go out onto the road, talking to my friend on the mobile phone...

havn't talked to her in a long time, and there seems so much to say...words come out excitedly, continuously and rapidly...her recent news, my recent news...she's getting married this year...she thinks I've changed and likes the 'new me' but also liked the 'old me'...I tell her about how I'm feeling more confident and comfortable with myself than ever before and enjoy her attentiveness and interest in what I have to say...when we talked previously, she used to be the one doing the talking...this time, for some reason, I'm talking non-stop...we talk and talk and talk and talk...platonic conversation at its very, very best...she mentions in passing that I'm good husband material and we talk about the whole love marriage/arranged marriage conundrum...she says she's sleepy and has to go, but suggests we meet up sometime this week...I say I'll call and confirm the next day and say goodbye...I hang up and look around...I've wandered at least a mile away from home...I smile to myself at being called husband material...does she know how much the compliment meant to me ? every young man has insecurities about making the step up from bachelor to husband and I'm no exception...so, when someone you had a huge crush on in school gives you an endorsement, its definitely reason to smile...I put my phone in my pocket, get my bearings, figure out the way home and trudge back...