Smorgasbord Posts from Your Archives – #PotLuck – Conversations with random strangers 2017 by Ritu Bhathal

This is the second post from the wonderfully varied archives of poet and author Ritu Bhathal. This week I have selected a post dear to heart. I love people watching and having spent considerable time in airports for work and pleasure, I will talk to anyone who dares to sit next to me. I do try to behave myself on long haul flights, but it is amazing what you can find out about someone in 10 hours!

Conversations with random strangers 2017 by Ritu Bhathal

Anyone who knows me will willingly confirm the following fact… I can talk for England!

And, though not verbal, once I start a comment rally , even on here, I find it hard to stop!

So it stands to reason, where there’s an opportunity to talk to someone, anyone, I will happily take it!

You can end up having lovely conversations with older people, who are sometimes boggled by the technology and communications nowadays, almost starved of regular ‘normal’ conversation.

The kids hate doing the weekly shop with me, apparently I ALWAYS stop to talk to someone and I take AGES… Hubby Dearest says the same… Hmmm, maybe there’s some truth to it then! 😜

Example 1.

I was shopping, sans kids or hubby, and went to the game section. Its Lil Princess’s birthday next month, so I need new present suggestions.. Too soon after Christmas! But, I digress.

I picked up Just Dance 2015 and went to pay… She loves these games.

An elderly lady was at the till. She looked at the game, then at me. I smiled and for no reason whatsoever explained it was a ‘getting ready for daughter’s birthday’ present. She said “Good choice my dear, at least it’s active!” We then went on to talk about the youngsters nowadays being addicted to console games, and lack of fresh air and exercise. This led to her saying she has no internet, no interest in getting it, and on to how her grand daughter insists on getting a text from them if they wanted to talk to her, not just a simple phone call! Her husband arrived and we parted company, with me getting a pat on the back for keeping my kids active, and for having a chat!

Yes, it does add 5-10 minutes to a trip out but it’s fun! I just can’t help it!

Example 2.

Yup, just today, I was in Primark and buying a couple of jumpers, which I had bought previously, but managed to shrink in the wash! 😳 Again, a lovely older lady was perusing the knitwear and happened upon one of the jumpers I’d also picked up. Eye contact occurred, then a smile, followed by a discussion about the jumpers being great, how I’m cr*p at laundry, and what on earth is up with Primark sizing!

Example 3

No, why would I stop there! The lady at the till was next. And after talking about the now infamous jumpers, we were discussing their practicality in my job, comfort and stuff, and I came away from this conversation with a ‘well done with doing the job you love!’
(And a queue of customers behind me!)

I have come to the conclusion its all about the eye contact…and smile.

So if you ever see me and don’t want to chat, whatever you do, don’t let me see you!!! If I smile, that’s 10 minutes of your life GONE! If, however, you fancy a chat, smile away!!!

Just don’t wink… That’s just weird!

©Ritu Bhathal 2017

What was your latest encounter with a stranger?  Please share in the comments….

About Ritu Bhathal

Ritu Bhathal was born in Birmingham in the mid-1970’s to migrant parents, hailing from Kenya but with Indian origin. This colourful background has been a constant source of inspiration to her.

From childhood, she always enjoyed reading. This love of books is mostly credited to her mother. The joy of reading spurred her on to become creative in her own writing, from fiction to poetry. Winning little writing competitions at school and locally gave her the encouragement to continue writing.

As a wife, mother, daughter, sister, and teacher, she has drawn on inspiration from many avenues to create the poems that she writes.

A qualified teacher, having studied at Kingston University, she now deals with classes of children as a sideline to her writing!

Ritu also writes a blog, a mixture of life and creativity, thoughts and opinions, which was recently awarded The Best Overall Blog Award at the Annual Bloggers Bash Awards in 2017.

Ritu is happily married and living in Kent, with her Hubby Dearest, and two children, not forgetting the furbaby Sonu Singh. She is currently working on some short stories, and a novel, to be published in the near future.

About Poetic Rituals.

Delve into a book of verse exploring different topics and different genres, all with a RITUal twist.

A collection of poetry drawing on the experiences of the writer, ranging from matters of the heart, love for the family, situations in life and some verses written with a humorous twist.

One of the reviews for the collection

Frank Hubeny 5.0 out of 5 stars A delightful book of metrical poetry with some haiku celebrating the family

This book contains about 120 pages of poems celebrating family and its joyfulness. Most of the poems are metrical and many of these rhyme. This book, for the most part, provides the reader with a traditional poetic, sound experience. The book also contains haiku and other such forms. These are also witty and enjoyable.

Although this is a book of poetry, you should be able to understand every page and find lines and stanzas that make you smile–or at least make you want to highlight them so you can find them again quickly.

Read all the reviews and buy the collection: https://www.amazon.com/Poetic-RITUals-Ritu-Bhathal/dp/1533088020

and other reviews on Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Poetic-RITUals-Ritu-Bhathal-ebook/dp/B01H46DN5Q

Read more reviews and follow Ritu on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30843440-poetic-rituals

Connect to Ritu

Blog: https://butismileanyway.wordpress.com/
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/butismileanyway
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PhantomGiggler
Bloglovin: https://www.bloglovin.com/blogs/but-i-smile-anyway-13707551
Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/ritusmiles 

My thanks to Ritu for permitting me to dive into her archives to share with you. I hope you will head over and check them out for yourselves. Thanks Sally