That bustle before the office
It’s 7.20 am. A bit too early even by my standards. I reach office by 8 usually, making me the first guy in.
Except that isn’t entirely true.
I am not statistically correct to allow myself this honour given i am never the first one in. There are always men and women already working before i even get to my table. The security guards, the cleaner ladies, the cafeteria men, the office boys and the building janitors. Their early morning shift has already commenced and they are in flow with their tasks. These folks don’t mess around.
However, you can hear them clearly and appreciate their utter disdain for humdrum. They talk a lot, reminding you of school days when the students took over the class when a teacher left and her replacement hasn’t entered yet. They either don’t know that i am there eavesdropping on them or they simply don’t care. Besides, why should they? They didn’t anticipate me. They never do. It’s their moment to keep things rolling. And a bit of noise doesn’t harm anybody.
Some are conversing in Bengali while others in Surjapuri but all of them are working. There is a daunting motion at display. Tables are being wiped, carpet is being vacuumed, somebody is adding milk into the coffee machine; somebody else is ensuring none of the glasses — and there are lots of glass walls here — showcase a fingerprint or a palmprint or any other print, one person is filling up water bottles and taking them into the conference room; washrooms are being sanitized too with tissue papers stacked up; plants are being watered. Etc.
There is so much going on.
Post 8 am, as colleagues start stepping inside the office, the abovedescribed chaos congruently dims alongside. With the rising brightness seeping through the window, the morning noise gives way to complete silence from a group of people. The same folks who are responsible for setting up for the stage for those who will be making themselves heard throughout the day.
