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Saturday, August 18, 2018

THE FLOATING DIARY (Short Story Journal – 23): KALEIDOSCOPE

On a lazy afternoon, a platter of Mixed Vegetable Pakora can be a perfect companion to sit and retrospect. This evening, as I sat at the little dingy teashop and munched on the hot crispy Pakoras, my mind wandered around my daylong subtle experience. There are so many incidences that happen around us every day, that it becomes impossible to arrive at a conclusion about them. Life is like a Kaleidoscope whose individual colors might be monotonous, but a collective effect gives an enthralling experience. Today I shall not note something that is a part of my own identity. I shall note down a short experience which I consider is important for me to know, when my amnesia completes its full-circle!

Today being a Sunday, was usually supposed to be a lazy one. However, I had been invited to a colleague’s house for attending a religious function followed by lunch. I got dressed up early, finished my breakfast and weekend chores and bid farewell to Aunt Padma. The rainclouds were hovering and thus I decided to take an umbrella along with me.

I reached Mr. Saurav Pandit’s house around noon. The intense aroma of burning incense sticks clogged the nostrils, whereas the smoke-filled misty atmosphere welcomed my eyes with a teary sensation. No doubt, a Puja was in progress. Saurav, my colleague, welcomed me inside and I moved through a mini crowd of devotees to take a peep inside the hall room, where the enormous Puja was being performed.

To my surprise I saw Saurav’s little daughter, Melee, sitting in the middle dressed in a saree and lots of flowers. She looked like the idol of some baby goddess! A priest was chanting some mantras relentlessly, while another was performing the rituals. Everybody chanted the mantras, following the first priest, and occasionally showered handful of torn flower-petals at Melee. Somewhere within my heart I felt a pain for Melee. She was a sweet innocent child whom I had seen so many times. Today she sat with a blank expression, unable to understand what was going on.

Saurav came over to me and said, “This is a Kumari Puja. The traditional worship of the Girl Child. We are running a bit behind schedule...”

Uma, Saurav’s wife came and interrupted, “Saurav, tomorrow Melee has her class test and I have given her a target to score at least eighty percent! Please wrap this up soon. She has to be rushed to the tuition after lunch, so that she can get the suggestions from her teacher!”

The couple got busy in their squabble and I slyly slipped away. I don’t know the reason, but I felt like laughing at whatever was happening. I finished a quick lunch and headed back home. However, a heavy downpour started and I took shelter under a shade. Quite a few other people crowded and crouched in that scanty place as we all tried to protect ourselves from getting drenched. I don’t know how long, but I must have waited there for at least two hours!

As the rains receded, I came out to head back home. Presently, a man came up, holding the hands of a little girl. At first I thought that he was a beggar. However, he didn’t do anything that seemed like begging. He simply stood in front of the shade and looked here and there. A food-vendor came out from his shop and handed over a parcel to the man and he thanked him.

Looking at the confused look on my face, the man smiled and said, “This is Usha. She is not my daughter. She is my Mother! I found her here on the streets, about seven years ago. It was the dreadful day when I had lost my mother. I had just lit her pyre and was returning home when I heard her cry. I came running and picked up the infant. She held my finger and stopped sobbing. The first word that came out of my mouth was… Maa!”

I stood stunned without any words while the man continued, “I am not a beggar. I work as a masonry’s labor. There is nobody in my house to cook during the day. All the shop-owners in this locality help us with food for my little Maa. We come here every day and get their blessings.”

The man went away and I began to walk back. I didn’t take the bus, but walked instead. Something weird was happening today. As evening fell, I arrived at the teashop, near my house. Sitting on the small wooden stool, I ordered a cup of tea and a platter of Mixed Vegetable Pakora. This can be a perfect companion to sit and retrospect. What is happening today? What is life trying to tell me? I wondered.

As I munched the hot crispy Pakoras, a girl arrived at the shop. She was probably in her early twenties and from her attire it seemed like returning she was returning from office.

She came up to the teashop owner, Ramu, and said excitedly, “Ramu uncle, please give me a platter of hot Pakoras! Today was my first day at work! I am super happy today! I want to surprise Baba with some tasty Pakoras. You remember, when I was small, every year after my school examination got over, Baba used to surprise me with Pakoras from your shop.”

Ramu handed over the Pakoras and the girl went away while I observed the entire episode. An unknown melancholy filled my heart. It was not sorrow; it was not happiness… It was something unexplained.

As I sit and write my journal today I wonder about the incidences that unfolded throughout today. All the three incidents were connected to a father and his daughter. All of them were episodes that related the intricate relationship of a father and his little girl. Somebody was worshipping his daughter as a deity while forcing her to perform in studies. Somebody was impersonating her as a mother and somebody had groomed her into a confident and self-sufficient lady! Every incident was unrelated, yet connected through an invisible string. Every point of view is so unique yet had some similarity. Nobody was wrong, and nobody was right! Perhaps everybody was right! I don’t know.

This is a sweet confusion and I didn’t want to arrive at a conclusion. However, it taught me something important… Life is a Kaleidoscope whose individual colors might be monotonous, but a collective effect gives an enthralling experience. There are so many things that happen around us. Some of them are happy, while some are sad. Yet, their collective impact is the true essence of life. Just like today’s episodes, we must cherish and honor womanhood and respect it. That is the essence. It is something that all men and women must do.


My learning from today is to cherish everything in life. I must do so when my amnesia erases my memories. I must understand that not one single episode is important. The collective effect is the true kaleidoscope of life.

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