Weather Cocks

Arun Patil advising Shekhawat

After torrential rains yesterday, the morning was relatively quiet, but dark and gloomy. The air was still and heavy, in anticipation of the skies opening up and another thundershower descending any moment. To quote Nahid Khan: “Not a single leaf on the tree is moving… but we are moving all the same.” And so we wrapped up the exercises without incident.
As it happens always, our mood during the exercises tends to mirror the weather. In that sense, we have become weathercocks (and weather hens). When it is bright and sunny, we automatically turn chirpy and cheerful. And when it is dark and gloomy, everybody turns quiet and lifeless, lacking the will to even respond to a forced joke. Razia Khan did a wonderful mimicry of 'lazy ladies' Sunita Jajodia and Nafisa Sayyad, who were reluctant to join the exercises today. But for Teja Singh, who clapped gleefully, nobody laughed.
Even Shekhawat, who is so upbeat about the Bangkok-Pattaya trip these days, looked unusually low today. He did not make any announcement and instead, drifted away to consult Arun Patil and Rehana Shaikh on some personal health issues. But as everybody knows, this is the proverbial lull before the storm. In a couple of days he would go all out guns blazing – collecting cash, making phone calls, accosting people midway through exercising… Life would swing back to normal.
Srichand Arora:
Shekhawat-ji, don't get upset. If this agent is not favorable, forget about him. Tu nahin aur sahi. Kehte hain na, sar salaamat joote (topi) hazaar. I am sure that by the time I'm back, you will finalize everything.
Jagmohan Papneja:
Due to global warming, the climate change is fast and having much larger impact than they ever imagined.