December 27, 2015.

For years the lane lay without a name. A mud-tar patch, five feet wide, bound by jackfruit, jamun, mangos, rain trees and others me know not, housing societies inside, twirls along in quiet .. from the home of Mission Sisters of Ajmer to Shanti Ashram. Me has walked this wavy line of land in LIC Colony for years ...at least more than 15 years... Today it has a name: Sri Ayyappa Mandir Marg. Lord Ayappa first took residence in a garage of a housing society; when it went for redevelopment, he shifted residence to a tin shed edging the track .... that was when we became friends...no fear nor peace of prayers, just a Hai... Lord Ayyappa and me....with the redevelopment over, Lord Ayyappa sits in a ground floor apartment, owned by prides of threaded and unthreaded Malayalis...there are more associations than Malayalis in Borivili, more gods than in Kerala... me am out. They say America has more temples than all of Tamil Nadu. But does any have a lane with a bouginvillea at the Sisters end and a bird spot towards the Ashram end? Me doubts; pink and white bougainvillea always, blue morning glory and morning glory in October, wild ladies' fingers, red star glory and others me know not. Me breaks walk every day to gaze at the plenty. At the bird spot, one is sure of enjoying a warbler or a crow; over the last three days, has been with two female koels on a dry tree ...me stands under the tree and waits; they breakfast on some insects; sit and watch morning walkers pass by loudly talking Sensex and Modi; today me stood for more than five minutes; she was above me, white barred and brown, some 10 ft. away; a second lady flew in; talked of the weather and crows' nests; flew away.. walking resumed...with the namkaran development will visit the lane, me fears... into Link Road and the Dogs Spot with aparajitas in blues and whites: strays, an Alastian, a pomeranian, a Labrador with their owners. Yes, dogs are the best humans. Patting me back for the day ... one beamed at Rama, surprising the Lady.