He said Don't Jump

I was walking down the street from my accommodation, and I hear someone shout, “Hey Pris, Paris.” I knew who that was immediately because he said he wanted to call me Paris. It was my friend Abhi from the festival. I could not figure out where the voice was coming from and I looked up….he was staying 3 houses down from me across the street on top of the bar/restaurant with the famous “fish thali.” He came down the steps and he gave me a handshake.

“You are staying here….are you serious? I thought this was my side of town.”

He laughed, “Well your place is much better than mine, but here I stay the month for great value.”

When I say near, he was just across the street-I couldn’t believe it.  I met someone randomly at a festival who was staying right next to me…in a residential area…near the lake…it was just so random.  I spoke about Abhi in an earlier post-the young boy with the fresh lens on life that had a beautiful curiosity and desire to learn. The mini Priscilla.....

I asked if he could show me his room because I could not believe that he was staying with a closer lake view than me. He was paying about $150 for the month, but sharing the space with a few boys-still that is an incredible bargain.

Abhi introduced me to the owner and he said that the place is known for their fish thali. I had no idea as I thought that it was just a bar/ restaurant. I would pass by and see tables of men drinking beer…rarely any women inside, but that didn’t scare me away. I can handle being around a bunch of men as long as there isn’t smoke and there is good food. The owner was eating a fish thali and I asked for the same one that he was having. It came out perfectly fresh and absolutely delicious and I was in food heaven. I told Abhi I would come upstairs to sit on the balcony when I was finished. I needed to have my food moment and I definitely did….

Abhi invited me innocently to go to the beach at midnight to watch the stars…he was talking about astronomy and how you can see different stars at different times. He really enjoyed peace and solitude like I did ignoring the large age gap-we both were just kids at heart. I told him that I had to run and he said he planned on staying home and would be free after his classes finished at 8:30.

It was really getting late in the afternoon about 2:30pm when I left his accommodation. It was the heat that was making me delay on the day because it was just too hot going out at 11am or 12 noon. I decided to go visit Miramar and I stopped by the restaurant that was always busy. I was kindly greeted by the server who showed me the lovely Christmas menu and drink menu with Mulled wine. They said it was latin night and I had to come and dance.

In the corner of my eye, I see a good looking guy and right away I know he is the owner. We were talking a bit and he mentioned that the Chef went to culinary school in Chicago-that was a good sign for their Christmas menu I said. He actually seemed interested in talking to me and I looked my worst. I had planned to go swimming that day and my outfit was not how I would normally dress to go “out at night.” I was really embarrassed to sit and talk with him because I just did not feel confident. He said, “Don’t worry you look great.” He offered me a drink and I said I would definitely stop by another time….that menu was so appealing…not the drinks…not the owner… the Christmas menu from the Chicago chef!

Another restaurant talking to an owner, making friends with everyone and them asking me to come back…too many to count everytime I travel.

I took my small adventure to the Goa Marriot, which was beautifully decorated for Christmas. I took a long walk along the beach watching the boats go out to watch dolphins for 350 rupees basically like 5 dollars. I heard some music so of course I had to go see what was going on. A school was performing Christmas dances in the middle of the circle asking people to buy tickets to their Christmas performance -very cute.

I went back to the Marriot and was talking to the staff about the Christmas season and all their amazing brunches, dinners etc. I sat in the window sill watching the sunset and just taking in the breeze. The breeze from that day was just priceless and so addicting that I didn’t even want to leave.  They were just the wide open windows from top to bottom…I just closed by eyes, felt the breeze, and looked at the Palm trees fading into the sunset…a beautiful moment…. Miramar beach is not much to write home about, but it has nice apartments, hotels, and an upscale vibe.

I ended up catching a ride back up and that is when I decided to see the play JUMP. It felt like that was a very relevant feeling for me so I went …..

The play “Jump” about a girl who tries to jump off a roof, but a man from the village ends up saving her life. They sit and have all these conversations about life on the roof of a building. He thinks that money and success bring happiness, but she teaches him that this is not the case. Love is not what you think, marriage is a farse, capitalism takes over your life, and then you die without a purpose.

I sat here with my friend, Om-his name from the play yesterday.

I saw him while waiting in line and recognized him immediately as he had great questions and seemed very socially aware. He believes that children should be educated from a young age on bigger issues. He thinks education is the key factor to changing things. He organizes motorcycle rides to empower groups of women and takes them all over India especially Himachal Pradesh and Kashmir. He has a wonderful aura about him and energy and his name of course is, “Om.” But he goes by the traveling monk. He has a daughter who is 23 years old and he has her photo as his screen saver. He is very interesting to talk to about social issues, justice, and the problems within the world we live in. He comes every single day to the festival as he has a strong desire to learn and immerse in culture like myself.

These are MY PEOPLE….the educators, desire to be educated, helpful, kind, emotionally intelligent, well read, and passionate about human change- fantastic.

He drives me back on his Royal Enfield and I love riding on the back because they are high up-the higher up the closer to heaven. I stop and get some Chicken momos, which is my new treat. For $1.25 I can get five….sometimes my ability to save money can be overkill…

It was a moment of clarity that I would not want to JUMP, but I am surrounded by angels who will always catch me when I fall...always