Pariyatti

Ch. 14 - Time Past and Time Present from Journey of Insight Meditation by Eric Lerner DELHI HOT LIKE A KILN. I wandered through empty streets at midday making final connections. London like a plunge into ice water, only hours later. I stood shivering in the transit lounge, my thin wool shawl wrapped tight around my shoulders, my socks incongruous in Indian sandals, even more incongruous in white pajama clothes, amidst fur and leather coats, heavy sweaters and fat, flushed, liquor-stained faces. I was emaciated by comparison. Crash landing in Boston, hours late. Time sense destroyed. I slept last in Calcutta. A strange wakefulness haunted my body. Alert to ponderous events all around me, I followed my breath as a customs official began pawing through my bag. Suddenly he stopped and handed it back to me with an apologetic smile. I felt a rising thickness in my throat to get beyond that door. She would be waiting. At first she wasn’t sure she could, but after letters back and forth, she’d finally agreed. ...