Monday 19 January 2015

She thinks

It's "winter" in India. Sometimes, it's only 12 degrees in the morning. Everyone is "freezing". If you pick just one, what would you choose, efficiency or spontaneity, she asks the other ten attendants, while a shiver comes up from her feet, to her head. It's 6.30, it's getting cold. We had better stayed inside, she remarks. Why are we more efficient in our relations to the outside world, than in our own bubble, she answers, while the third one runs off to the next meeting. Maybe democracy isn't the solution, he concludes, as everyone walks towards the caf to get their rice-dal. If they're lucky, there might be some chicken.

I'm so jealous of you, you can still go running in this biodiversity reserve for one and a half years, she thinks to a first year after a run. She doesn't say it out loud. She doesn't want to come over too dramatic. The first year stretches and laughs at her friend, exhausted on the floor, even though she didn't run half the distance they ran!

As they walk up the stairs, her friend says Today, I realized I'm gonna miss this place so much. Today, she asks when she finished her cup of milk she just bought in the Dukaan? I realized I'm gonna miss this place so much so often, she thinks, but walking up the stairs to wada one, it hits her again, and she realizes for the fourhundredthirteenth time that she's gonna misss this place so much.

He asks What is the third tradeoff? Quickly, all the students look away. She pretends to be writing , but when no one answered after 4 seconds, she gathers all her courage and raises her hand, looking for the right words. They seem to have dissapeared as soon as he turned around and pointed at her. 'Louise', he says, but not in the way you're supposed to say it, more like Louiis. They just can't.

There are 10 minutes left until the next class starts. They walk to the library lawn, where the warmth can reach their sun-craving skin. How are you, her roomie shouts from afar, but then in Hebrew, not in English. She answers in Hebrew. She's proud. They take of their much-needed sweaters and scarfs for 9 minutes, and lie down in the grass. I don't want to go to maths she says, me neither she says. After 12 minutes, they go anyway.

How, they wonder, can we convince him to make her un-grounded for tomorrow? They planned this dinner for so long (5 days), he has to let her go! They make a drawing of three girls (you can recognize it's them because there is one without hair and one really tall one) in a restaurant. One says Cheers!. The girls in the drawing are happy, because he let her go. This must work, she claims. It actually only works when the grounded one agrees to being grounded one more week. Doesn't matter, it worked.

So they take the short cut to the gate. They are lucky in the beginning: the first tractor already stops. Paud, they ask? He points to the back of the car. They climb into the back, trying to stay as elegant as possible, very aware of the looks of the three guys in the front. They get out, and one of the guys asks them One picture please. They say yes. We've given so many pictures for free, one of them says afterwards, we can give this to 'pay him'. The other two agree in silence.
They still have 5 km to go, but they thought it was just one km. It's getting dark, they're tired. When the needs are highest, you will soon be helped out, a Dutch saying says. So one of a sudden, a rickshaw appears. They discuss whether they should actually pay the 30 rupees he asks, but one of them convinces the others: it's really getting dark! The following morning, they get up early, to make sure they don't miss brunch. They laugh about the night before. They are all a bit really tired. They had fun.


She sits at her desk and lights a candle. She also puts incense on her desk. Her laptop is open, waiting for her to use it, but she can't concentrate with this horribly wonderful music on the background. It awakens a kind of sadness in her, but the most beautiful one that exists. She smiles to herself, her roommate shuts her curtains.

I'm gonna miss this place so much, she thinks.

I'm gonna miss this place so much, I think.



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