Notion and Time

Notion and Time were once holidaying on a beach in Varkala, India. The beach was full of people in the evening, so they would wake up early to escape the human cacophony. The only other activity on the beach consisted of families who had gathered to perform a Hindu ritual called bali to help their departed loved ones attain moksha or liberation. There were also beach surfers who carefully waded the waves and learned to master them one lesson at a time. Time and Notion walked in the middle of these families on one side and surfers of the sea on the other. The beach was so vast that both these groups were specks on the horizon as Notion and Time strolled silently in the middle. Time liked getting her feet wet while Notion walked gracefully away from the waves. So Time’s footsteps would get washed away while Notion left a trail.

Notion and Time had been married for a long time, so the silence between them was not uncomfortable. But this morning, Time was feeling restless, but she kept her thoughts to herself to keep the sanctity of their silence intact. Notion, being as perceptive as he was, could sense that, but he did nothing to address Time’s discomfort. Notion knew that Time would eventually find a way to shut the murmur in her brain. On the other hand, Time wished that Notion could sense her restlessness and find a way to comfort her. The morning walk ended with the usual breakfast at their favorite beach shack called the ‘Sunny Side Up.’