5 things that scare me - Fear and Phobia.

 

Escalators –I have never stepped on an escalator and don’t know when I will or whether I ever will. The concept of a moving staircase scares the daylights out of me. At railway platforms, malls and airports I‘d rather use the staircase than an escalator.

I say an escalator is as fearful as a creepy-crawly alligator

A moving staircase

😅That would be straight out of a Harry Potter.

My friends join me in the elevator

Cajoling me to step on the scary people - mover

I am terrified!

Ha Ha! An escalator to me only spells disaster.

 

Snakes – Snakes may be beautiful and fascinating to some, but to me they are simply slippery, slimy creatures who bring on nightmares even during the day. I fear snakes and I can’t even bear to look at one for long.  Many moons ago, my then toddler brother went to pick up something that he thought was a black ribbon, but which turned out to be a snake. The disaster was averted in time by my ever-vigilant parents.

 

Spiral staircase – A spiral stairway frightens me to no end. Besides the fear of falling through the gap between each step, I can’t take the twists and turns. They leave me feeling giddy and uneasy. A teacher remembers me crawling up the spiral staircase in school when the main staircase was under repair.

 

Cable cars – Cable cars don’t appeal to me. Once again, I am besieged with fright as I wonder,’ What if the cable breaks”! I’ll go plunging down and might meet my creatures. I fear heights.

,Speed – I don’t care for speed. Car and motorbike racing just don’t hold any allure for me. Moderate and steady is more my style. I will even caution the auto-rickshaw driver to slow down if he thinks he’s on a racing track.

 

So that’s me, folks, I am not a very daring or adventurous person. I love to travel but often have to find a way out of these impediments.  If not given a choice, I pray as if my life depended on it and at that time, it would.

Are you a dare-devil or do you too harbour fears and phobias? Do tell. 

 😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅

This post is part of the weekly blogchatterbloghop prompt. 

The image has been taken from pixabay. 

A Christmas reunion

 

Teaching and taking care of my parents kept me quite occupied. My social life was nothing to write home about. Not being married didn’t bother me. I occasionally had thoughts about Sam but didn’t dwell on them. Pleasantly plump with wavy black hair and sparrow brown eyes. At thirty - six ,  I considered myself moderately attractive.

Preparing for the Christmas pageant was both exciting and tiring. The day had seen numerous rehearsals, costume – fittings and over-excited nine-year-olds all over the place.

 It was 4 p.m. when I slowly walked out of the school gate and decided to stop for a coffee at the coffee shop at the end of the street. Sitting in the cosy café, enjoying my steaming cup of coffee I smiled as I thought about the enthusiasm of the energetic youngsters. How full of life they were! I drew from their energy and spirit. 

Outside, the snow fell gently, turning the world into a pristine white blanket, while inside the café the aroma of freshly baked cakes and croissants wafted through. Coffee lovers engaged in animated conversations or kept their voices low. I decided to let the world pass me by and enjoy my favourite beverage.  

 I looked out of the window, staring at nothing in particular when suddenly I found a pair of very grey eyes gazing at me. They belonged to a tall, bronzed gentleman whom I believed I had met before. Then like a flash of lightning it struck me – It was Sam. We had been neighbours, growing up together, until my parents moved to Missouri from Delhi. I confess that I did have a crush on him and it was my closely guarded secret. However, life happened and we gradually lost touch.  

Was I dreaming? After an intervention of ten years, Sam appeared out of nowhere. He stood outside the café, smiling. The same boyish good looks, but now a little grey at the temples. I thought I saw a softness in his eyes that I had never noticed before.  Sam had recognized me.

“ Amy!” he exclaimed, entering the café and heading towards my table. “Yes, it is, I said, grinning like a schoolgirl. “You’ve hardly changed, said Sam enveloping me in a bear hug.  “Neither have you, I replied still wondering if this were a dream, that would end abruptly.  Questions tumbled out. We both admitted guiltily that we had neither taken the time nor made the effort to keep in touch, except for a few initial letters. Nonetheless, it was as if the ten years had never happened. Sam told me that he had pursued his passion for travel and worked as a travel writer. He was based in Delhi, nicknamed The Happy Single Wanderer.

I told Sam that teaching little children gave me the utmost pleasure and that was what I had been doing for the past so many years.  I invited him home to meet my parents. They would be delighted to see him. Sam had never married.

All those years ago,

our parents had hoped that we’d take our friendship to the next level. Would we now take a leap of faith towards a deeper commitment or just remain friends? 

 We began seeing more of each other and creating new memories and found ourselves taking baby steps toward a commitment that came 6months later with the ringing of wedding bells.

I now believe in fairy tales and second chances.

 This post is part of the Bloghopblogchatter prompt. 

Image from Pixabay.