Conversation

The idea of a Conversation

Imagine a Swiss mountain with two solitary (!) guys sitting across a boulder with a couple of bear kegs thrown in.

Mountain life in non tourism time is pretty boring. It goes on something like this, each utterance is followed by few minutes of idyllic silence:

'So...'

...

'Auch so...'

...

'So...'

...

'Auch so...'

...

Few kegs later, they reach the end of their conversation, tip their hats at each other and walk off.

A variation: Replace 'So...' by 'Danke' (thanks in German) and 'Auch so...' by 'Bitte' (welcome).

Italians are a different kind. They can't 'not' converse at all if they spot just another Italian in any crowded place; the din can never suppress their soaring spirit. In an instant the silence of a dull tram / train compartment would come alive and bring smiles on the co travellers regardless of their language affinity. Possible only because their conversation is  110 percent gesticulation and just -10 percent verbal!!! Needless to say, an Italian stepping out of a shopping mall carrying bags in both hands won't be able to speak because his hands are tied :-)

Americans, easy going, strike conversation at will with 'Hi Howzt goin?'. They don't need a verbal answer and strike a chit chat with you at once. They don't even demand your interest :-)

Brits, stiff upper lip, do converse but mostly about football and beer, if they are in good mood that is!

Africans practice multitude of conversation channels... music is one of them. You walk in a park anywhere in Europe /USA and see an African / Afro Americans stepping in...their hands and feet start swirling to the rhythm of the beat and the player and listener strike a conversation at once, regardless of the distance between them. 

Violence is another conversation channel for them... I witnessed a complex conversation between a Car, a Mobile Phone, Owner of both and the Stealer. Stealer starts the conversation by breaking the window of a parked car for the phone. Car joins by sending out a shrill Alarm. Owner notices, joins the conversation by pulling out a gun and starts shooting at the guy trying to decamp with 'his' phone! My dumbstruck Indian friend continued the conversation later on in office telling everyone that he wanted to go home (to India)  at once!

We Indian are a different lot who don't fit into a particular conversation pattern. You see, unlike our brothers and sisters elsewhere, we have plenitude of languages but none as a common one, yet. The scope as well as the reach of most of our conversations are limited not just by language boundaries but by myriad others too. 

So, as a Nation, we have been trained to 'internalise' those conversations; after all we are the Masters of 'Conversations with Self'. So brothers and sisters, when we face unacceptable things in life, inside and outside our homes, we get into this beautiful zen garden, with a steaming cup of drink of our choice and start a mindful conversation with ourselves till the drink gets over. 

Satisfied with the quality of our conversation and the joy that engulfs us just after that, we don the robe of Buddha', quip 'this too shall pass' and jump back into our world, making more such conversations all the way through our life!

This, is the "Art of Conversation in a nutshell" my friends :-)