Somewhere in future!
by Karpaga Priya VJ
(Dindigul, India)
One fine golden yellow evening, like once in a blue moon you're back from your hectic office a little sooner than usual. The absence of your dear son and husband, leave you with no choice than being home-alone for a while. ‘It has been a while since I’ve spent some time with me!’ you think.
Totally unwilling to settle for a nap, you occupy a comfortable place in the couch of your balcony with a hot steaming cup of coffee. Taking a neat little sip, you lean back with leisure. The scorching sun outside and the silence of the afternoon, decide to take you a stroll down your memory lane. From 32, you go back a decade, to your 20. And that is certainly when you were in your pretty college days.
Suddenly then, you remember your classroom that haunted you once with its lectures. You think of the person who used to be your best friend. The gossips and laughs you had with her, flashes before your face like an old movie. And now it seems to be like an year or two since you've last talked to that person. The grades and honors you had by then, don't even remain in your poor brain by now! With a closed fist, you scratch your memory, even harder to recollect the names of those who used to be your classmates, with a finger stretching for each name you remember. And atlast when you look down, you only see six of your fingers open, or probably seven may be! "Oh,No! We've shared the classes, the subjects, the days, the laughter and the gossips for four years.. and now I'm pathetic enough to not even get their names.." you scold your own self. And you know too, that however tough you try, you can never stop life from happening!
Out of the blue, you get an idea.. "What if I gather everybody, with their telephone numbers I have, and organize a party-meet!?".. "Wouldn't that sound fun..". Applauding your brilliance, you rush to your study in search of your old slam book. May be that, you'll get the phone numbers from them. With too much difficulty of guarding your nostrils from the years-old dust, you manage to pull out the big pink book. Grabbing your mobile
you run back to occupy your balcony couch position.
"Ufffffff..!", blowing the dust off, you open the book thing which is exactly followed by a "Trinngggnggg..!" of your calling-bell. And in comes your little son, holding his knee. "I fell down so hard Mommy! It hurts"..he cries. Your poor heart skips a beat seeing the kid’s teary eyes. Removing his backpack and freeing him of his necktie, you rush in to grab some ointment. After a tedious job of feeding, medication and cuddling, you make that tiny kiddo sleep and heave a sigh of relief. Rightly then your handy phone starts to ring, taking you on your feet.
Startled seeing your office's number on display, you answer it. "Mam, we need those documents and files of your project to be mailed immediately, hope you be here as soon as possible" ends the call. "Oh! Shit. just now I thought of relaxing a bit, but I've to go now" you yell in disgust. Requesting your neighbor woman to take care of your sleeping son, you run back downstairs to your scooty.
When all the job’s done you return home back again by 8, as tired as a stray dog. Finding your husband not back yet, and your kid sleep again you sit beside him. With cooking to be done and chores to be finished, tiredness and irritation peaks up a hundred times. Legs and your head, aching like hell, make you feel weak. Too tired to feed your stomach, you decide to sleep for the day.
Too silent again it is, on the outside. A cool gentle breeze blows, mildly. And that poor pink booklet you left in the couch of your balcony, opens wide by the blowing wind.
The pages smile at you,
"When she had all the time in the world, she never spent any with those people. And now, when she really wants to be together with them, she has been robbed off her time!
These humans are too insane… School or college or bachelorhood or whatever, they realize the moment only when it’s actually over."
May be a decade or so later, we may be cursing 'this day' for not spending it with those whom we loved and to be with.
And no!! Now isn't too late for us to begin!
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