Act of carrying a conversation

My house was full yesterday, my mom's best friend's family along with the whole herd of sons, daughters, sons-in-law, daughters-in-law, grandchildren visited us. It's quite fascinating to watch people when they are in their element. Excited, everybody started to talk at once. Each one of them wanted to be heard but none willing to listen.

I was excited myself, seeing them after a long time and wanted to talk too. But I knew after sometime however hard I pitched in, I cannot compete with them, started to listen instead. The zest in them amazed me.

The topic was a wedding. One of their relative's son got married that day. They were all there to attend the wedding and since the venue was close to my house, they dropped in. It started with how the hosts treated them. The conversation turned to jewels, silk sarees, bride's hair style, gift they bought and the gift they received, about the caterer who catered the lunch. WHEW! Short of planning for the newly wedded's first born kid, all other topics were covered. Their eye for details was amazing.

Now the time for coffee and snacks... My mom always make wonderful coffee freshly brewed. Being her daughter, I was expected to make coffee the way she does. Though my hands reached for the instant, I restrained myself. They loved the coffee and the snacks and was quiet for a while.

They started to talk about current affairs, Mumbai blasts, lethargy of the government, the current threat of recession and they felt sorry for me as I work for an IT company. They wanted to know, if I will be in trouble and they backed their statement with numerous examples. Everyone had a relative who got fired recently. Though the question was addressed to me, they did not expect a reply from me and I did not give them one. I sat there bemused, smiled, nodded and added a word or two wherever required...

I used to be a chatterbox myself, but now I have trained myself to talk less. I feel it's waste of energy, as I do not gain anything out of empty conversations. Not that I am very intelligent and converse wittily all the time. Atleast, I want to stick to people who make meaningful conversations, so that I can gain something out of it.

Again a spell of quietness, it was tranquil for 10 minutes while they sat contended and closed their eyes. After all the talking and munching may be they thought that they needed some rest but suddenly my mom's friend wanted to go to the temple and the kids wanted to go to Marina beach.

We stay adjacent to a famous temple and very close to the beach. Either way they wanted me to act as their guide. After an argument, they decided to go to temple.

I took them inside the temple and started to join the queue of devotees who waited for their turn to have their darshan. They were disappointed and annoyed at me and asked a resident of that place for more than 15 years how I never knew someone who can usher us inside the temple directly. What they did not know was I detest to jump queues. Moreover the queue was a small one and it would take max 15 mts to reach the sanctum sanctorum. My point was when the Deity is standing there for years to bless us, why can't we stand for 15 minutes and think about him peacefully. Grumbling they yielded.

They left our house late in the evening and when I locked the door and turned to go in, it was like silence after a storm. I sighed and started to clear off things... But I sort of missed the life and spirit in them, while enjoyed the space and peace.

Who knows! One of them would be writing a blog on the same topic. I would really love to read the other side of this. It would be interesting to know what they thought of me. The few adjectives that crosses my mind is haughty, arrogant, proud, insolent, supercilious, disdainful; that's just to name a few : )

Now looking at the length of my post, it sounds like "pot calling the kettle black" ; )