Theloopylululog

I walk out into the cold night of Nairobi, a little anxious and a whole lot excited. Feeling sensational in blue jeans and a purple hoodie; reminding me of that Tobey Maguire scene from Spiderman. Raindrops are falling on my head singing in the background. C’mon! You know the scene…just before he facepalms himself to the ground. Yeah…that one!

The moment the night lights hit me, I realise I am in Africa! Surrounded by black people wearing black in the black of the night. How in God’s name am I to recognise him amongst this fashionable lot yes, but all looking alike like nightcrawler from X-men? And here I was told Kenyans are colourful people. With my heart throbbing like it was racing against the wind gods, I searched for him among the sea of black.

When my eyes finally adjusted to the monochrome welcome, I saw that he wasn’t there yet. A nice cabbie found me, introduced himself and made sure I would use his services by handing me his phone to call the man I was waiting for. Nice! So chivalry did exist here unlike my country and was I glad or what!

People ( by that I mean Google obviously) warn you against all things Africa. Giving you a picture of bandits, rastafarians and lions roaming about in broadlight, all out to either get your purse, your religion or your throat depending on whoever finds you first! Don’t even bother asking what they say might jump you at nights. BUT here I was living a movie of my own, smiling at everyone, positively one hug away from running off into the night with the Uber cabbie, grateful that I was for his timely thoughtfulness. Who does that? Except in the movies.

My man was running late. Typical for an Indian yeah but Kenyan too? Unaware to me, he was in a movie of his own, hopping off a matatu, a boda boda followed by an Amitabh Bacchhan’s Coolie style swift run to come get me!

A few moments spent trying really hard NOT to scream my anxiety away and risking scaring the night out of the beautiful people there, I sat on the pavement waiting. Hands, legs, head; all shaking.

When our eyes did meet, I noticed they weren’t from space. Didn’t he say he was over 6 feet tall? The first words that tumbled out of my shy mouth were, “You ain’t that tall, baby!” When I finally hugged the man I had fallen in love with many months ago online, it was like coming home.

Cliched. I know. Hey! I warned you, didn’t I? I didn’t? Shoot…here it is then. You are in my movie buddy…so let’s move it! Next take please!

But this moment, that is straight out of my own movieland was a culmination of many such moments over many days spent pinching myself. Wondering if it was all a dream.

Let me zoom out and take you back to the moment it all began. A flash back as they say in India.

June 2018. My first blog on WordPress.

July 2018. My first post on the little village I lived in during the best childhood years of my life.

August 2018. My first meeting with a writer from the other side of the ocean on my Dad’s birthday.

February 2019. We are so enamored by our friendship that we wish we could cross the ocean and meet each other. Soon! Touche!

March 2019. The moment I read a new blogpost of his, I left a comment that this was a new side of him I was reading about. Only to be revealed that it was a post written by his friend.

Moments later, the friend came across my comment and sent a link to a song that refreshed my memories of a place that was my lifeline, a piece of my childhood spent under untarnished skies and uncorrupt people. It felt like a flash back: me running around the hills, drenching in the rain, climbing guava trees and watching village life go by through the little window that was my favorite nook under the high roof of a portuguese style house.

I was one email away from falling in love.

April 2019. I sent one in gratitude.

Days into it, I received a reply that set the wheels running for this highly unanticipated love story that could only ever happen in the movies.

BUT it did. Ofcourse it did!

Many firsts followed.

June 2019. I went for the passport interview. Nailed it in my first try.

August 2019. My first vaccine as an adult. Got my yellow fever shot that left me in a sleepy stupor for 3 days!

September 2019. I booked my tickets from my kid brother’s first house.

Applied for a tourist visa. Expecting to be kept in limbo. BUT received it the very next day.

October 20,2019. The day I flew for the first time ever. It rained. It had been raining throughout our courtship. No wonder, it did on the day I was to meet him for the first time even thought it rarely ever rains in October.

Everything that happened that day felt like it had the touch of God’s hand. Like I was God’s chosen child, everything fell into it’s perfect place.

I was leaving India for the first time. For months away from my family that had never even been dreamt about before. Living in with a man I didn’t in reality know all that much. Well, love is blind. For all I know he could have been a thug. Or a woman out to swindle me off my savings. But typical filmy style, I left caution to the winds and just flew.

BUT, as in the movies, things went about in cliched perfection. So perfect you could lick it off the slick airport floor! As usual an uncle sat next to me who couldn’t stop staring at my screen. A child that tried to bawl but fell asleep half way through. A tiny toilet that was actually clean. Tea that was all kinds of bitter. And food, that was actually delicious.

People warned me of strange airport rules. Lost baggage. Rude staff. Hours wasted to get through security. Nothing happened. Not to me. I was out of the flight and into the night of Kenya in 15 minutes. Even the baggage carousel had a moment with me when it was just us for a few minutes. You and I in this beautiful, beautiful world!

So when I say dreams come true and fairies hand us our soulmates through the little corners of a blogspace, believe me. When I say movies are a reflection of our innate desires, silent wishes and infinite faith on the eternal source of all, believe me it is true. And when I say, love is all around, hiding in plain sight if we only care to believe in the impossible, do not doubt me.

I am telling you, if only we had gotten married somewhere in the wild savannah under the wide African sun, WordPress would have been invited. Don’t laugh…I even wrote them a gratitude post for helping me find the love of my life on my birthday. If that wasn’t straight out of a movie, I don’t know what is!