Daydreams and Kisses

 "Kiss me beneath the milky twilight
Lead me out on the moonlit floor

 Lift up your open hand

 Strike up the band and make the fireflies dance

 Silver moon's sparkling,

 So kiss me"

                          - Kiss Me: Sixpence None the Richer

I've recently discovered this song that's apparently been around for ages. It's called "Kiss Me" and it's by a band quirkily titled Sixpence None the Richer. This song has apparently been doing the rounds since the nineties when it shot to fame after being featured on an episode of Dawson's Creek. For the less informed, this was the episode where Dawson and Joey had their first kiss. (Cue to say "Aww" or put your hand to your heart with a beatific smile, remembering your teenage days- or if you're not a teenager dream utterly unrealistic dreams of what teenage is like). So, as I was saying Dawson and Joey had their first kiss and teenyboppers all over the world fell in love- some with that cute guy who sat in front of them and occasionally asked for a pencil in Math class, some with Dawson and some with Tom Cruise( till flash forward a few years later when he would begin eating said Joey aka Katie Holmes, his wife's placenta and  jumping on couches to declare his undying love).

I fell in love with this song a few days ago after a tumultous shift to the land of- snow, co-ed dorms, maple trees, where "sick" = "cool", guys who think you want their random freaking bodies grinding against you without prior permission, girls who think that this is normal, vegetarianism and obsession with healthy eating, curly fries, meat and more junk food than you've seen in your life, mobile companies who charge you for more operations than you knew your cell phone could perform (incoming, outgoing, messaging, caller id- i kid you not, they charge you for seeing the freaking number of the person who's calling you- in retrospect this is probably why movies like 'When a Stranger Calls' are such big hits), stereotypes, courtsey, an unseemly obsession with privacy- where a parent is not allowed to know the password or access details of their kid's bank account, even if said kid is sitting with them in the manager's office, helpful strangers, complete ignorance of other countries- "So , if you like, are Indian, how come, you like, speak English?" -and the sad part is, this is actually a completely innoccent question. The land of convenience and convenience stores which go on for miles showing you endless variety when all the while all you want is a freaking granola bar- "Would you like trail mix, blueberry, cranberry, mixed berry, fruit and nut, honey and nut, low fat, high protein...".  Where everyone including the guy from the phone company greets you with a bright smile and a "How you doing?" -not Joey Tribbiani style and says goodbye with " Have a great day" and then promptly forgets your very existence. Where you don't know your neighbour and this is exactly the way they would like to keep it, where people, especially female people have the capactiy to roam around in flimsy shorts that end before they begin in freezing weather yet wear sweaters and layers of sweatshirts on top. The land of opportunity, the passport to a successful career and recognition. The land where I'm going to live for five years.

But, I digress. More accurately i got caught up in my chief preoccupation these days- wondering about the place I've landed up in voluntarily and the results that my five year stay is going to bring about. Anyway, coming back to the song. I love it. It has this beautiful, perfect magical feel to it- like how you would like your story to go, how things would happen if the guy actually knew what to do and what to say. If somehow magically everything turned pretty and lyrical and you got that perfect kiss- and then some,from the perfect guy, at the perfect place, at the perfect time. And somehow magically, you didn't have to rush home to catch that plane that takes you far away the next day. Or in Dawson's case, the girl falling for your best friend. Anyhoo- that's life. Un-perfect. Unpredictable. For now, I shall trust that perhaps there is some method to the madness. I shall find the lyricism in the chaos and paint daydreams with accompanying 'perfect' background music playing in my head as I trudge up the road to my morning classes in the crisp cold fall. And I'll be happy.