I belong to the category of people who like to live in two parallel universes at the same time, one which reflects the world they desire to live in, and the other, the world where they actually live in. And it is not often that these two worlds coincide but when they do, its a beautiful feeling. Romance has always been something that I believed in deeply. It is something that is a part of both my universes. I have seen a lot of couples in love, some who have managed to stay by each other no matter what, and some who have drifted apart with time. I have seen people who were in love long before they got married and some for whom love happened after marriage. The one thing that remained common to all the couples was love. Every time I come across a couple, I find out something about love and relationships that I have not known earlier. I have seen my parents, their friends, my friends, and a lot of other couples, who let cupid play his tricks on them and have only fallen more and more in love with each other over the years. But even then, there have always been questions that have never left my mind. Is it really possible for two people to spend a lifetime together? Does 'forever and always' happen for real or is it just an illusion created by novels and movies that two people in love actually are capable of devoting their life to each other completely? What happens when these so-in-love couples face old age? When they can no longer walk on their own or when sight and sound start to leave them slowly in solitude? I got the answers to all my questions a few days back. I was out with my best friend. Priya's complex in Delhi has always been a place where you can find a crowd full of cupid's victims. We stepped into a coffee shop and took a seat that faced the door diagonally. The coffee shop had a few stairs at the entrance which made the main entrance only partially visible. We placed our order and in a few minutes we were enjoying coffee. A couple of minutes later, I saw a man, covered in wrinkles, with thick glasses and a walking stick to help him walk, slowly climbing up the stairs. He must have been in his eighties. He wasn't very tall, had silver hair and bald patches, and wore clothes that made him appear slimmer than he actually was. He climbed up the stairs slowly and came and stood near the table next to us. He stood there looking all confused. We were looking at him constantly and couldn't help but feel bad that he was all alone at that age. A waiter approached him, hoping to help him but he dismissed the waiter. We sat there, trying to figure out what was going on. He had his gaze fixed at the door. A few mins later, I saw someone climbing up the staircase at the entrance. The waiter who had come to the man, was now at the entrance helping someone. And then, at the staircase, appeared an old lady, dressed in white, with silver hair, and a walking stick in her hand. As soon as she reached the last stair, the man slowly walked to her and gave her his hand. She held his hand and he lead her to their table. As they reached the table, he asked the waiter to pull out a chair for her and once she was settled, he sat across her. They placed the order for each other and sat there holding hands, looking at each other with a smile on their faces. I sat there looking at them in awe with the biggest smile on my face and watery eyes. They were both in their eighties, needed walking sticks to help them walk, were wearing hearing aids and were out on a date! They sat there looking at each other with the expression that people generally have when they are just in the beginning phase of their relationship. It was hard at first to believe what I was looking at. But it was a time where both my universes were coinciding. I was sitting there, witnessing a couple who had spent a lifetime together and were still in love and by each other's side. It was this incident that answered all those questions I have had. Some people do spend their lifetime together.It does not matter how old you get, or how much time you have spent together. Love, if it is true, does last forever and always, no matter what!
