Detour from Life

The captain had turned off the warning sign for the seat belt. The air hostess' mellifluous voice was echoing in the plane as if she was a pianist playing a violin for herself in a gigantic mall. I was travelling, once again, from one town to another, on the auspicious night of Diwali. I had to attend a conference call with one of our US clients and a very important meeting the next morning. I could not summon the courage to inform my parents that at the night of Diwali, their son would be just two hours away taking a call with strangers from a room in a five-star hotel.

I looked down and the brightly lit buildings reminded me of my house back in my hometown. It must be beautifully ornamented with twinkling lights and floating candles, I thought.

"Would you like vegetarian or non-vegetarian?" The air hostess' voice brought me back to the plane.

She questioned again, "Sir would you like vegetarian or non-vegetarian?"

I couldn't respond. I wished if I could place my order at an altitude of 35000 ft. I wanted to eat poori, rajma, curd and some pickle made by my mom.

I asked her, "You didn’t go home on Diwali?"

"Not everybody is as lucky as you are. At least, you will reach your home on Diwali." She replied.

She went away, leaving me thinking what a home felt like. I had stayed in so many hotels in past few years that when I went back to my hotel room, it almost made me feel like home. There wasn't much difference after all. The paintings on the wall kept changing but the bed side lamps were equally beautiful. The same 42" LCD TV and a king sized bed. The breakfast table situated next to the window would ask me every morning what would I have for breakfast. Wasn’t everything the same?

At the time of disembarkation, the air hostess said, "Sir, wish your family a very Happy Diwali!" I switched the phone on and found nine missed calls, six from office and three from home. I called the office first and told them to arrange the call in an hour and a half. Meanwhile, papa called again. "Where are you son? We have been waiting since long."

"I have an important meeting, papa. I am afraid I will not be able to make it this time." Papa went silent. I could hear my family's laughter and the sound of fireworks in the background.

Miles away from the liveliness of my home, my taxi was trudging quietly on a lonesome road.  I never realised when I alienated myself from the world. I had been an island for so long that intimacy scared me away. It never dawned upon me that I traversed the globe with a mask on. I was apprehensive of taking the mask off, perhaps was scared of facing myself.

The taxi drew up at the front gates of a grand hotel. A huge swarthy guard with imperial moustache opened the taxi door for me and said, "Welcome back sir. Happy Diwali!" I fumbled around in the back of the car seat. The driver asked, "Sir, are you looking for something?" I said, "Yes, Myself."

The town looked exquisite from my room. I opened my laptop and waited for the phone call. Meanwhile, in an effort to pull up a presentation from 'My Documents', I clicked on 'My Pictures' instead. There was a five-year old 'me' walking down the road holding papa's index finger, my right hand pointed to an ice-cream vendor; everybody eating pop corns by the lake at Nainital; papa driving our first ambassador car; me dressed in a superman's costume for a fancy dress competition, maa-papa standing together with Taj Mahal in the backdrop; maa draped in a beautiful red sari on Karwa-Chauth; papa hugging me on my graduation day.

My phone rang but I could not separate myself from those pictures. I wanted to eat pop corns by the Naini Lake once again. I pined for a break from myself. My phone was ringing feverishly. I was in the car again; I had to rush for an urgent meeting. The vivid recollection of my childhood, my college days, and our family vacations made me restless.

Everybody was having snacks after Diwali Pooja when the door bell rang. Papa opened the door. He didn’t register for a second and then exclaimed, "Oh my God! What a pleasant surprise!" It was me. I had reached home on Diwali... to attend an urgent meeting. I also had to relay the air hostess' message, remember!!

Wish you all a very Happy Diwali!!

My Favourite Pastime

Library is my favourite place. Whenever Dudette is not around to read a story to me, I come here and spend a great deal of time contemplating which book to read...

Then I think a little harder...

Then I take a nap leaving the reading to some other day...

Desperate Measures

The sky was dark and void. The black hooded figure crossed a dark deserted alley which led itself to a dusty, unmetalled road. Flanked on both sides with bushes and shrubs, the road was strewn with pebbles but she didn’t seem to be bothered. It appeared as though her determined steps knew their way forward. The relentless chirp of crickets made the night less still. Far away in the distance, he was targeting her and she could sense it too but it no longer mattered to her? She had to take that risk. She knew he wouldn’t give her much time but she wasn’t scared at all. Though she could feel some moisture on her forehead and at the tip of her nose but it was due to humidity in the air. The undue exhaustion was wearing her down, her knees were wobbling and her heart was sinking, yet she was waiting for him in anticipation.

He had discovered her identity a few months ago. Though she was a vampire but she was better than a human. He had learned that she never traded her soul for blood. Every new moon she needed blood to keep herself alive but she had never preyed on an innocent. The years of practice helped her channel her urges. She would only kill morally bankrupt mortals who slaughtered others for fun and would do so barefacedly over and over again. He adored her for ridding the society off the real monsters.

For the first time when he walked up to her doorsteps, he didn’t say a word, instead handed her an envelope and walked away. The envelope contained a note which read, “Need a friend?” and a few pictures of her in action. It didn’t take her long to understand that like everybody else, her clandestine activities were not a secret to him. He had taken his time to understand her lifestyle and her way of working.

She wondered that despite being a human, he was ready to be with her but letting somebody into her life meant jeopardizing her own existence. Accepting his proposal, on the other hand, ran the risk of exposure. So she decided to explain the perils of this friendship to his own life but he didn’t seem to care.

He brought a little excitement, a breath of fresh air in to her dull life. Ever since she was turned into a vampire, she found herself devoid of any emotions. She never felt a hint of pain or sorrow, nor did her heart feel any joy. She mostly feigned normalcy so as to blend in and to keep from standing out. But he changed everything. He filled her with a strange emotion. She was lost and empty, yet full of everything. She was restless and looking for him everywhere. He was the only one who gratified her urges. She found his occasional appearances intoxicating. Every time he came around, she found herself staring at him from the distance. His fragrance would rejuvenate her senses. He made her realise what she had been missing. She soon figured that he was equally fond of her for he kept watching her but was too proud to bare his feelings.

One night when she was sitting on a chair by the huge glass window in her room, watching the storm roll in, she noticed a shadow wandering around in her lawn. When she reached there, he turned around and went away, leaving his partially burnt cigarette behind.

Six months had gone by but he didn’t show up. Passion had made her face pale ivory. It was the new moon again and the urge was taking control of her. She walked towards the broken bridge where he smoked. But before she could reach there, she was shot with a wooden bullet. He had warned her not to step out that night. Like him, somebody else had figured about her but failed to understand the justness of her actions. He came running for her, knelt down, lifted her head and kept it on his knees. His eyes were moist.

“You shouldn’t have done this? I left you a note not to leave home tonight.”
“I know. But that note meant that you were watching over me. It was the only way for me to find you. Where did you go? I wanted to meet you.”
“By risking your life?”
“It was worth it!!”

I understand...

He flung his blue ball at me but I missed it narrowly. He tried again with the same fervour but I missed it again. I felt bad for letting him down so I apologized to him for my incompetency. I explained that I am unable to run or bend forward due to the fracture. He nodded assuringly but I am sure he couldn’t make head or tails of the conversation for he is too small to understand what ribs are.

Though Frosty is very intelligent but it takes some time for him to get a hang of complex matters. For example, it took me two days to make him understand what part of our house is called kitchen and why he is not welcome in there. It took us further two days to understand when he sits outside the kitchen looking at the ceiling, it means he is hungry. The other day when he licked my feet immediately after I had a bath, I learned that he liked the fragrance (or the taste) of my foot cream. I told him that his licking my feet irritated me but he didn’t get it. So one day, I offered to apply the same cream on his hands but he opted out. I hope you understand now why ‘body structure and ribs’ will be a complex topic for him.

He has seen me sitting in a recliner throughout the day. He has also seen me sleeping, sitting in my bed propped up with pillows. He understands that something is wrong but he doesn’t fully understand the gravity of the problem.

He had come to meet me at the hospital but they didn’t let him in. Perhaps they were afraid that he might catch on some infection since he is still a baby. But he told them that he was not a baby any more and it was his responsibility to check if I was comfortable or if I needed anything. He tried to explain how important it was for him to see me once but they gave him a cold shoulder. So he came back home and waited for me eagerly.

The day I came back home was the happiest day for him. He jumped on me when I entered the house but my father caught him midway and explained to him that I was not strong enough then to hold him for a few days. He nodded but not before telling me that he jump waited jump for jump me jump so jump desperately jump. He was glad that I was home. Jump."

Next time when I went to the doctor for a review, he kept sitting in the balcony until I returned home safely. I asked him if he had become a pessimist or had lost faith in me but he shook his head. Then I asked him why was he jumping then? And if he thought that I would not return home? And if he thanked his stars when he saw me. He didn’t reply, instead he brought me a book and sat next to me for next couple of hours.

That very moment, I realized that this cute little animal doesn't share the same protocol but he certainly understands and cares more than a human being. Perhaps he is closer to God than I can ever be because he can listen to 'His' voice which I tend to ignore sometimes.