Airport Scenes

The phone rang, it was an unknown number. I decided to ignore it but it kept ringing till I finally picked up the call. My flight was delayed. After that call, I realised that airlines have enough time to hunt you down to let you know that the flight is not on time. I had to hear the message to the T and press 1. Even after you respond, you get a WhatsApp message which is a short form of the audio message and finally a mail message as well just in case you are a mail person just like some old corporate chaps who want anything and everything in the mail. I am in Sales and I am all about following up but this was overkill.

Now that I had so much time on my hands, I had to get occupied with some novel things to keep myself busy. Soon I was exploring Adam Grant’s book “Hidden Potential”. I was sipping hot water in Starbucks and was reading for nearly 90 minutes. I must have dog-eared the book. Cruelty my family will add. I was making notes on the sides as well.

I was feeling obliged to buy something for the service they rendered. It was a nice table and chair. I took measurements of the same and told the guy there that this was perfectly designed to get people like me into reading and reach a state of flow. He was embarrassed when I asked him what is the height of the table and chair. He summoned some courage and told me those three golden words “I don’t know” which made me feel light. I stood closer to the table and chair and tried to measure the length of my leg. I wish there was an app on my phone which could capture that data. I decided to click a picture and run it through an AI.

Seeing somebody reading a book in the Airport these days is a rarity. So this time, I was on a mission to see how many people read a book. I was inside the airport after a smooth seamless check-in and security check, I was there by 8 PM. For the next 3 hours, I was scanning my surroundings to spot those book lovers. I was not disappointed. My eyes spotted four people reading the following books:

1. A guy had taken a secluded table and chair, far from the middle. I decided to go around him and saw that he was reading Brian Weiss’s book “Only Love Is Real” and he was having a beer.
2. This person was seated next to me and was displaying his book to the world, ” Discovering India” and I was wondering about the author. Then I noticed that it was a special edition by Groww
3. Starbucks coffee is my favourite place and at this time of the hour, I was sipping hot water and noticed that a couple had kept a book in front of them titled ” Manifest” and was sipping cold coffee.
4. An aisle passenger seated on the opposite side was reading ” Choker Bali” by Rabindranath Tagore. That was something that made me curious.
   

I was feeling hungry and was looking around for open restaurants. Some were open but were under maintenance. Some opened but the very sight of the staff made me move on to better places. You can make out from their demeanour and furrowed brows. “What on earth do you want here and now?” I could hear their silent questions. After all, it was past 10:30 pm. Finally, David came to my rescue with his enthusiastic response “You can have anything in this restaurant as long as you are ready to have arabiatta and Alfredo pasta and that has to be penne only”. I was initially dissuaded by David not to have those muffins and croissants. He cautioned me that it was lying there from morning and it had become hard. I nudged him to show me. In an instant, he slid open that glass with a swag and asked me to feel it. I felt it and thanked him for his decency and transparency. He took one more dig at it and showed me its toughness. In this day and age, having a David of this kind was next to impossible. This eating place was bank opposite to my new gate. So I was taking a liberty. I got the pasta in the nick of time. I was impressed with David as he was working overtime and also was passionate about his job.

Star gets its bucks, Anand receives its sweets, and Tiffin has expressed their hospitality by offering additional rasam and their standard offer. Is there a happy hour also in cock and Bull? The Chai shop lady makes noodles in less than 3 minutes, The Irish Cafe is full of spirits without spirits. A delayed flight and the ensuing scenes in the airport can be described as a cocktail of emotions. Somebody said it best “By their fruits, ye shall know them.” If you want to know how people have progressed on their path, just watch them in little interactions of everyday life. Are they patient? Cheerful? Sensitive to the needs around them? Are they free from compulsive likes and dislikes? Can they work harmoniously with each other?

There are so many factors that lead to flight delays. For me, it was first about reaching the airport in advance not to take a risk with traffic and I got those additional hours to notice things happening around. My wife commented, ” You get a different level of energy when you are in the airport.” Now she knows where I am drawing that reserve of energy. My ultimate fulfilment is becoming a thoughtful observer of my own life and in the case of the Airport, others’ lives. I do not mean to intrude. I get a lot of material to write blogs when there is a flight delay and I am in the airport. After all, I have a new pen and it is waiting to get dry and what better place to cover the scenes from the airport?