Come let’s venture into a bookshelf
The owner I know not who
Shh….be quiet, lest you disturb the
souls
Sleeping peacefully on the shelf
Life is bliss in the company of a
bookshelf that treasures myriad pleasures. Bookshelves have always held a
perennial charm for me and I manage to hunt down one wherever I go. So, on a
sunny morning as I stepped into the lovely Silver Sands Holiday Village in Goa my
eyes were drawn to the overladen bookshelf standing in the lounge.
It was a messy and dusty bookshelf bearing
the weight of its priceless treasures and yet it defined the beauty of the
space. I almost ran at once to have a look at its assets – musty but lovely
assets they were!
Look at the dark mahogany rows
displaying their prized possessions. I discovered a vibrant mix of known and unknown
titles. They formed such a perfect combination: the books, the comfy lounge
chairs and the holiday mood. Oh yes, the rule book says you have to read the books sitting in the lounge itself. Not that I mind it much….
See these musty old books on the
shelf – their own place to be! These soundless souls remain witness to the
emotions and expressions of us humans. In a corner of the lounge someone laughed
out loud, someone whispered, someone stole a glance and someone giggled.
In the silence of the bookshelf the books watched as life went by at a lazy
pace.
I noticed a lovely blue book playing peek-a-boo from behind a mini-tower of paperbacks and brought it out. Musty they may be, but all the same, old books do attract me always. The yellowed pages hold so much more than just stories. A forgotten bookmark, a scribble, a date written, a dog-eared page, each little thing speaking of a book's journey with a previous reader.
May be another traveller had picked up the book just like me and explored its fictional world. Had the reader finished reading the book or was it left midway? Did the reader fall in love with the characters? Did the reader carry back the story with her in her heart? I would never know the answers and the book won't reveal such secrets to me. They are too loyal you see....
They are the musty books dwelling in a dusty bookshelf!!
I noticed a lovely blue book playing peek-a-boo from behind a mini-tower of paperbacks and brought it out. Musty they may be, but all the same, old books do attract me always. The yellowed pages hold so much more than just stories. A forgotten bookmark, a scribble, a date written, a dog-eared page, each little thing speaking of a book's journey with a previous reader.
May be another traveller had picked up the book just like me and explored its fictional world. Had the reader finished reading the book or was it left midway? Did the reader fall in love with the characters? Did the reader carry back the story with her in her heart? I would never know the answers and the book won't reveal such secrets to me. They are too loyal you see....
They are the musty books dwelling in a dusty bookshelf!!
