The Day We Met the King

 A black wool beanie hat crowned his head, white Reebok trainers was the choice of footwear and a green down gilet was his gown. Here in front of me was the king. 

I’ve never met a king before. I don’t think I have ever dreamt or imagined meeting one either. So, I have to retrospectively use my imagination and think, ‘What do I think a king would look like?’ My retrospective answer is, ‘Not like this man in front of me.’

But, looks are not everything or in this case - remotely relevant. This man had a certain aura that made me very conscious of myself and every word he said, he said with purpose.

The meeting had been set up by a local principal who has a close family connection with the king. Upon meeting him we were welcomed into a large meeting room and directed to sit in front of the king himself. I couldn’t help but notice he had the exact same desk I have at work - he had the same chaotic filing system too. He began by giving us a history of the Khasi Tribe and the system it uses in modern day times. Each village has an Elder, the head man of the village. Above this tier are the clan elders (there is a hierarchy of clans) and then at the top sits the man with the beanie hat, the King. (Who also happens to be a fully qualified doctor).

It was fascinating to hear him talk about the differences between ‘India’ and ‘North East India’. I am determined to get on the flight back home without too many issues so I won’t delve into too much detail. Not just now anyway. There is a real determination from the king to continue the traditions of the tribal people. He spoke at length about the morals and characteristics of the Khasi people and the risk of “them being eroded.” 

Like all Khasi people we have met so far, the mobile waits for nobody - so midway through the conversation he answered calls. Lots of calls. His ability to carry on from where he left off was astonishing. He was deeply interested in the work being carried out across the region during the next 7 weeks. His questions were not simply polite or general, he was knowledgable, thoroughly inquisitive and progressive in his thoughts.

He was honest too - “I’d have made you a cup of tea if I knew you were coming… but I didn’t.”