What all could the streetlights in this city have seen?

Cars rushing past, swerving and overtaking, and people navigating their way through this tangle of vehicles cautiously – holding their palm out impatiently as if the traffic will halt at the mere raise of their hand.

Rain or shine, these sentinels say ever-rooted at their posts, blinking in what seems to be Morse code.
They watch impatient cars inch forward, smog swallow the road in one gasping breath, and autumn leaves rustle on the ground. And then, with the tide of time, come the monsoon evenings where rain falls slanted under their glow.

Sometimes I wonder what all they have beheld over time: two lovers under a moonlit sky? Vagrants wandering at red lights, begging for alms? Or perhaps, the eventual passing of boisterous wedding processions with fanfare?

And maybe that is why I like them so much – in an ever-shifting world, they are the ones that remain loyal to their purpose (the ones that actually function in the first place – this is Gurgaon, after all).

So here’s to the streetlights, working or not – the city’s most reliable witnesses.

Yours truly,
Divi