Living cemeteries

I won't lie, I wasn't too pleased at having to visit the cemetery all by myself.

It was for a story for The Hindu, August 12.

I wasn't afraid - Zombies, I was sure, would definitely liven up one's life.

Rather, it was the quiet, and the feeling that I was intruding, that bothered me. And I don't know what Miss. Manners suggested about walking around final resting places.

In retrospect, I needn't have worried so much. A dog fight in the vast grounds of the Indian Christian Cemetery livened things up more than I bargained for; the polished stones turned into lunch tables for some staff members and visitors; a girl with a bright pink umbrella didn't seem to feel out of place in the supposedly sombre mood of the place.

There were a considerable number of people carrying on with their business. Nobody, at least at first glance, seemed to be unduly upset at their surroundings.

Respect for life, more than anything, perhaps.