The Little Things

Thaipusam is an annual Hindu festival which commemorates the occasion when Parvati gave Murugan a vel (spear) so he could vanquish the evil demon Soorapadman.Hundreds thousands of devotees will flock to and flood Penang and its poor little roads and for a day in the year, the streets are graced with myriads of bright colors and massive traffic jams as civilization stood still to make way for the gods.

I was a face in the maddening crowd and for the lack of a word to wrap up the occasion, i would say 'sweaty'. I got stepped on, spat at, splashed wet,  pushed about, sweat-stained, eyes smoked, sardined and worn off but I enjoyed every moment of it. There were people dancing, fighting. singing, jeering, whistling, chanting, people of all races, countries and cultures came as one for the celebration of life and beyond.