City of extremes

The weather in my city is extreme. Too hot to handle in summers and too cold to chill out in winters. Just like the temperament of the people here. I finished my education and a major part of life, here. A lot has changed since then just like my life.
I was born in a town that oozed of laziness (not any more though). A major chunk of my childhood was spent in the wilderness of tea gardens where elephants and leopards would greet us often. While a pair of snakes, maybe mates, were esteemed family members who refused to leave the ancestral home. They made their presence in every possible corner and had a fascination towards human nudity. Very often in the middle of a shower when you’re in your true elements, you would find them admiringly staring at you. You would freeze but dare not get out of the bathroom because you couldn’t risk go anti-culture. Nudity in our tradition is a big no even if means dying of snake bite in an isolated corner. I grew up amongst the wild, leaving a deep impact on my personality and hair. No matter what I do or where I am, both are impossible to be tamed.
Coming to the present, my city has changed drastically. The people taking cue from the weather has gone extreme. Crimes have gained an unprecedented popularity especially that relates to women. Rapes have gained a record-breaking high, so much so, that our conscience refuses to shock us every morning when we read one. We are so used to the lapse of security for our women. Maybe criminals are bored too committing other crimes, so when bored they just commit rape and more rape. Nothing is a bar to them, not even age. All that matters is that you are a member of the weaker sex and you have private parts too vulnerable to be violated.
Funny thing is that it isn’t about rape too. One mere look is sure to pierce your soul and send shivers down your spine. If you’re lost and stop to ask for direction, one look is sure to make you feel unsafe and automatically prayers starting coming to your lips. By evening, when the sun sets in, there is a sudden rush to reach safe venues else your dear ones are on the edge till you reach. Because gone are the days that security came with a male companion. It is just not enough if you have an escorting male member because both of you know that predators can attack, anytime. And frankly, numbers do count, how can He help you if he has to fight against a group of wild men? We are wise to know that those things happen in movies and not in real life. So though we profess of equality at all levels, there are no equal hours for working women. As we reach the wag end of the day, there is a natural rush to finish or delegate the task and it doesn’t have anything to do with competency.
The men of my city are naturally endowed with raging hormones and X-ray eyes which if put to good use can change the fate of our nation. But, the law enforcing forces are finding it hard to harbor the energies to better use. Even harsh court verdicts don’t deter their spirits. Wonder, how to handle them.
The language too has become harsher just like the temperament. People don’t know how to touch your heart and all they do is hurt you with words. They are ready to throw choicest of abuses at you, at the slightest excuse. And if you’re vocabulary is limited in terms of abuses, brush up else it might be difficult to decipher what most people talk here. Older days, abuses were liberally used by the uneducated aka the drivers, maids, slum dwellers but now they are embraced by all irrespective of age, caste, profession or whatever. Don’t be surprised by its liberal use among colleagues and clients.
It’s been a while that I’ve moved back but I’m yet to be greeted with a true homecoming feeling. Dear city and its people, if you’re reading, I sincerely request you to not change anymore because not all change is for better.

Pic Courtesy: Google Images