My Newest Indian Friends

Based on a song of similar title about a brief drinking relationship, I thought I'd give the background to an interesting and intense period of life with a neighbour, or rather, several over time. More relevance than you may think at first!

I'd moved here several years ago and had little to do with anyone for quite some time. Seems I chose well and was a little slow getting started I should say. I had friends who came to visit, and sometimes stay over, but not many.

We lived in the same apartment block area a few doors apart and had only briefly conversed at somewhat long distance over trite matters like the weather and gardens. I could be found outside when it was sunny, tending a small select garden area. This didn't extend to Winter months when I'd rather not confront weather and mud on a daily basis. Local kids came by to play every so often, so I was known in a few households one way or another.

I came to know some casually but many kept to themselves. I could assess their status now and again as people came and went periodically. After a few days mulling over things on the lawn garden and having a coffee in my hand, I sighted the neighbour sitting on her entry step enjoying some sun I imagined. Due to the railing in place from my vantage point I wasn't able to see her completely, just her head.

As I caught her attention she croaked out something I couldn't quite hear properly, so I ambled along the path not wanting to indecently appear too fast. As I neared her I could see her sari was quite a far way from her body as she was sitting, and it occurred to me that she had a baby under there!

The sari jumped and wriggled and I smiled at the amusing sight- she was feeding the little thing! She again spoke, bidding me a good morning and asked after me. I had stopped at the end of her pathway wanting to respect her current personal situation with baby in hand and ahhh, breast. I replied in kind and without hesitation she asked if I'd come by for tea some morning, explaining we'd been neighbours for over a year but hardly knew each other.

I had glanced at the bulge beneath her sari wriggling every now and again and my face probably gave me away, and she smiled broadly and asked did I want to see baby? I nearly went red before a hesitant yes came out, and she slid her sari aside from her shoulder and over baby to expose a beautiful piece of brown curved landscape along with a much paler baby suckling on her left breast.

The sight made me gasp a little, hopefully inaudible to her, yet again my face gave away my enthusiasm and joy at the delights before me. I said he must be enjoying the rewarding goodness and she agreed. She offered that time would be coming for baby to move to other food, but she also enjoyed their closeness.

Unable to remove my eyes from her chest for very long, and I suspect I wet my lips once or twice, she explained her absentee husband was a workaholic and spent more than 10 months away every year. I observed that I recalled seeing a man around there infrequently and she agreed. She explained, her sister and brother in law came by every week or so, but it wasn't the same, to which I could only agree. These were the only other family she had apart from a much older sister who settled here many years earlier and lived in another city.

As baby's chugging and gurgling started to increase I made a movement to back away and exhaled that I'd love to drop by for a tea some time. Yes she said,"do come, do try it", in imitation of a popular TV ad for, what else, tea?

I beamed a broad smile and said happily, shall we try tomorrow I enquired? Yes please was the smiling reply as sari went back over baby and she stood ever so slowly, both baby and visible curves stretching at the material, as he curled up in her arm and close to her chest.

I waved and said tomorrow then and turned away. Truth be told I was aware I might have embarrassed myself if I'd continued to stare. Both by view and by a bulge in my shorts (it was Summer)!

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