“Amma what is there in the sky?” “Sun is there, moon is there, stars are there, clouds are there” “What is there above clouds?” “God is sitting there and watching you. So you do anything wrong God will note everything and punish you!” “God is above that cloud?” “Yes baby.. God is up there!” Is it not great to be ignorant and believe in simple things in life? Clouds have always been a fascination to me. The fluffy fluffy white clouds forming different shapes, the thick smoky clouds bringing rains, the orangish wavy clouds hiding the sun behind them; whatever be the part of the day it is, clouds kept me occupied. There were this pleasant days as kids, sitting with friends and trying to identify the different shapes of the cloud. One minute it would be an elephant, the next minute it would turn into a bird, and then it would take the shape of human face.   I had one earnest wish for very very very long time. To fly up up above the clouds, fall from the top and land with a bounce on the fluffy fluffy clouds. I have dreamt of it day and night, to jump up and down on the fluffy clouds, pull out a piece of cloud and hug it tight. Will it not be lovely to lie down on those soft, white, cuddly clouds? And so I had spent years looking through the window hoping that one day I will reach for the sky! But then I was going to school and we had geography classes. My geography teacher taught me four types of clouds. They were Cirrus, Nimbus, Cumulus, Stratus. Cirrus is the thin strands of clouds. Nimbus is the rain bearing clouds. Stratus is layers of uniform pattern clouds. Cumulus is my fluffy clouds. “Oh!! So cumulus is the cloud I need to look out for! If I fall on Cirrus then it will be like smoke and I might land straight down to earth. Nimbus must be the wet clouds since they carry rain with them. And moreover what if when I step on them lightning strikes? So to be safe, stay away from Nimbus clouds. I did not like the look of stratus clouds. So I have to look for the cumulus clouds! And then dive straight into it!” From then on apart from just looking out of the window, I started identifying the type of clouds and got more excited to see the cumulus fluffy clouds. I taught my mother that there are four types of clouds. God must be choosing the cloud depending on His mood and then He might be happily sitting on it right. Haaa.. Lucky He, what a fluffy seat He has chosen. But then there are these clear sky days. God also needs holidays na, so when He is on leave, it is clear sky day 🙂 But then I grew up and went to higher classes. The type of clouds changed into universe, galaxy, milky way, hot sun, planets, sky, thin air, no gravity and so many more concepts! Now how can I sit on the clouds? I will be sitting closer to the sun and I might get burnt by the Sun. And what if there is no gravity? How will I be able to jump on the clouds? I will be just floating above the clouds is it? Will some meteor attack me when I am out there? What if the cloud moves away to some other city while I am sitting on it? How will I reach home then? But how is God managing to sit there then? He is God na, He must be capable of doing anything. What will I do? Poor little girl. First of all I don’t know how to reach there, then I don’t know what the sun will do to me, then I don’t know if I will be able to enjoy my jump or I will be floating! So many problems were there to tackle in the little girl’s life. But then I grew up and went to higher classes. I was taught about rockets, people going to moon and other planets, satellites and some more technologies. My chances of lying on the cloud were deteriorating as years passed by. Soon, God is sitting on the clouds turned into God is present everywhere. Airplanes easily went through the clouds and came down. Clouds did not bounce the planes. There is much more beyond the clouds and it is not meant for jumping! Today, I sit in the plane popping my head at the window, looking enviously at the bunches and bunches of fluffy clouds right under the plane. There they are, forming a bouncy bed ready to hold me. I want to rush to the emergency exit, pull open the door, jump right unto the clouds, fall gently on them, lie there without any disturbance and play for a while. But then! I am grown up! I know that the wish will remain an unfulfilled wish. And that if I rush to the door, I will be called mentally unstable girl. How I wish I remained the little young girl eagerly passing the days hoping that one day I will reach for the sky. Hmmm..