Thursday, June 14, 2012

3713. GUNNERWALL

GUNNERWALL
He took the oath to never bother anyone
again : walking past the doorway of the
firing-squad's lounge, just sticking his
head in to say hi, and keeping on his way.
He bought five tickets to nowhere, train,
rail and bus, and a package for Bombay.
'Mumbai', said the clerk, you mean 'Mumbai.'
Even Rudyard Kipling wouldn't know the
answer to that one. 'No, no, well maybe,'
he said, 'maybe I want Kilimanjaro, or
the Darjeeling Express. What's the
difference, really?' The young girl behind
the clerk looked up and smiled, 'My
mother's family once hailed from
Gujurat. Back then they were quite
wealthy. Alas, nothing now. Katjiawar, 
Madhya Pradesh, places like that. You
should see, maybe, Lothal, Dholavira,
Golo Dhoro.' She went back to her papers.
Everything seemed right in its way, 
and he smiled back beaming.

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