It was late evening, most people were within the comforts of their homes, trying to find some calmness and comfort, struggling to keep their office out of their minds.
Rohini was comfortable in her recliner chair. The chair was part of a small study room which had a variety of books on the shelves of a wooden cabinet with glass doors. The other big presence was a desktop computer which had not been used for a while. The room was on the first floor of Rohini’s parents’ house.
On the walls were a few paintings of some local artists, they were a recent hobby of Rohini’s father. Mr Arora had gone to an art exhibition that his friend wanted to attend and from there he returned inspired to add paintings to the house.
A reading lamp spread its light over the recliner chair with the focus being the book Rohini was reading. It was a book about how to interact with people and create a positive impression. Rohini did not have any problem with interacting with people, being the social media manager of a chain of bookshops; it’s just that she thought that maybe there are some crucial pointers in there which she may have overlooked.
The fan sped at a low speed with the air being cool from the heavy rains that had occurred that morning. Then suddenly everything became silent and dark. It was a power outage.
Rohini sighed, this had been occurring for a few days, almost a week. The information was that some work was going on in the power grid and hence, power outage was occurring. Some people said that the power was being directed to factories who were secretly working at night in an attempt to void the emission norms.
The power outage lasted between one to two hours and occured around 8-8:30 pm. No one had a generator or inverter at their homes since power outages used to be only an issue for a few minutes, maximum 30.
Rohini found it an annoyance in the beginning. All of a sudden everything came to a stop, and that also within the hours of relaxing and spending some time with hobbies. People were forced to reach out for their smartphones, of course only the ones who were not already on it. Smartphones have murdered so many hobbies.
Some people used this time to go for a walk after dinner, some sat on their terraces or balconies to catch the passing breeze. The smartphone screens distinctly shone in the hands of many. It was like the neighbourhood was coming to life in a different manner.
Rohini had slowly come to realise that within this time she could actually empty her mind and unwind from all the stress, worries and the quest of the mind to find what to do next. Rohni kept her smartphone with its screen towards the surface and in silent mode and then she sank deep into the depths of her mind where a comfortable emptiness awaited her arrival. It was a very good way to spend time.
But the real question as we all know is that would she still be able to do the same when the power outages stop? Do we still continue on with the understanding we gain in scarcity even when there is no scarcity?
Written by Anuran Chatterji
The Deep Evenings
Early Morning Memories 