Unlike most Monday mornings, when I'm rudely awakened by my phone alarm at 6am, and grudgingly drag myself out of bed, this past Monday, I literally skipped out of bed. Reaching out to turn off the alarm, I glanced upon the date and suddenly felt a surge of elation. It was the first of December. The magical month had arrived.
Kochi's getting cooler, and darker earlier. Wearying commutes down pot-holed, traffic-snarled roads are momentarily lightened by the twinkling lights of colourful paper stars. Christmas trees are up. All around, there's excited chatter of the forthcoming weeks; of family and friends visiting, vacations planned and Christmas shopping. In schools, clubs and other institutions, preparation and practices for events associated with Christmas and the New Year have begun in earnest. You only have to open the newspapers to get an idea of the numerous activities and events taking place this month. Book fairs, film screenings, sporting events, dance and theatre performances, art events, concerts and sales and exhibitions. The season has well and truly begun. Unless you're a cranky, crabby, crotchety old human being, you gotta be feeling the buzz!
As for me, I'm counting the days till the school holidays. That's when I get deliverance from chaotic mornings; from the mayhem and pandemonium created by pressing the snooze button one too many times, then scrambling to wake up three groggy-eyed children and get them bathed, fed and dressed (not always in time) for the school bus at 6.50am. Surely, it was that thought, specifically, that made me prance out of bed so euphorically. Oh, the sweet anticipation of not having to endure that rigmarole for a whole two weeks.
But I can't afford to grumble, really. There are plenty of alarms going off these days, far earlier than mine, and for a purpose far worthier. Across Kochi and other cities, runners are up at the crack of dawn, gearing themselves for the Cochin International Half Marathon on December 7. Two months ago, when I was asked if I wanted to participate, by my super-fit, athletic sister-in-law, I wanted to bury my head in the flower pot nearby. “No, Not this time,” I said, sheepishly. Unable to run for more than five minutes at a stretch, without feeling exhausted, tormented, and extremely sorry for myself, I wasn't about to attempt a marathon. I'm very happy walking on the treadmill, thank you, at the leisurely pace I'm used to, chatting and texting on my phone, reading a magazine or watching a movie at the same time. No 'sweating it out' for me.
I'd much rather sit and watch others sweat it out. Like I did on November 30, at Kochi's Jawaharalal Nehru Stadium, where I had a wonderful time watching the Indian Super League (ISL) football match between the Kochi Blasters and Chennayin FC. The stadium was jam-packed and the atmosphere electric. There have been, so far, five ISL matches held in Kochi over the past two months, and at each one, the attendance has been overwhelming, and the crowd's response, deafening. The on-field TV commentators have repeatedly said that the Kochi crowds have been the best and loudest!
On October 8, I was at the same stadium to watch a one-day international cricket match between India and the West Indies. The match was a damp squib. Not only because India lost poorly, but because it was terribly dull and boring, made only worse by the blistering heat.
There was, however, a heartening image I took back with me that day. Towards the end of the match, I saw two ladies in the crowd (I'm happy to say I know them both) walking the aisles with a black garbage bag, encouraging spectators to throw their empty soda and water bottles, Lays chips bags and paper napkins into it. At that moment, I was stung by a strange feeling, which bordered on envy, I have to admit. “What a simple, necessary, obvious and noble thing to do,” I thought. “Why ever did I not think of it first?” It took me back to images, videos and news stories from the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, of Japanese fans cleaning up the stands in stadiums after each match they watched, and sometimes had lost. In Japan, it is part of the culture to clean up after sporting events, concerts and festivals. People will take their trash home and dispose it there if they can't find a dustbin close by.
If you haven't seen those videos on YouTube, I urge you to.
Japanese fans cleaning stadium
It's a simple lesson in cleanliness and responsibility for all of us. Pick up and dispose your own trash. Every single bit of it. Every single time. As we head into the new year with new resolutions, let us also pledge to add impetus to our prime minister's campaign of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. Here's to a happy, clean and pristine year!