Chai Stall …

As daylight would fade

& the air cool,

I would leave the hotel

& then stop awhile

at a nearby tea-shop,

for a cup 

of sweet & milky chai,

a biscuit

& a cigarette.

The proprietor

would always

greet me

with the 

greatest of respect,

as he silently

went through

his motions

with the serious

yet relaxed calm

of a master craftsman.

Sometimes I would 

stop by

late at night,

In need of 

a certain quiet,

a solidity,

a place to rest

& watch.

He would mix my tea

& then gesture

to the cigarettes,

minding his business

& I minding mine.

That I liked.