Alok is a salesman at Lakshmi Silks， a sad shop located in one of the busiest shopping districts of Bangalore City.' The old， stone-paved roads here are narrow; the granite slabs underfoot are slippery-they have been worn down by the volume of people who walk on them every day.Alok trudges from the bus stop to the shop every morning and back from the shop to the bus stop every night， watching his feet on the smooth stones. Most of the gray slabs look similar， but some have patterns on them: an arc of white， a swir1 of black， white specks on a dark background like a reflection of the night sky.He has walked this route so many times that he can recall the order of these patterned stones.