Home And Family
| By : Leena Khan Jha | Previous | Next |
| Posted on : 22 May, 2007 | Total Views : 190 |
Scintillating silence, thundering chaos, raining mischief and the awesome threesome. Life couldn’t have been more vibrant. The added bonanza of a wet monsoon readily accorded to us the high setting our childish hearts on fire. I recall those sunny afternoons when I along with my siblings, watched in bewilderment the dark cloud enveloping the big bright sun with consumable ease. The rain would then trickle by, first in thick, scanty drops and then with ample ferocity to leave puddles to be splashed into later.
I recall moulding boats of discarded newspapers and old notebooks and watch them sail to unknown destinations in those narrow ‘Swiss canals’, the drains that outlined our homes. Many capsized near the shore but a few headed further. And it was on these that we loaded our dreams-of going far and farther. We would sit in awe of future, hands clasped together to thwart any effort to separate us. The sun would shine again – the Rainbow so proclaimed. And so it did! As a despot! Bright and blaring. We would then move to catch with our afternoon siesta wondering who was mightier- the sun or the rain. Confused, we would huddle in our beds pulling the sparkling white sweets over our rain smacked heads.
Years have passed since. We still sit and chat but those simple gestures of holding hands and discovering those little joys have been conditioned by the practicalities of life. We no more float our boats together. We have our destinations chalked out and on board are our spouse and children. We meet at our convenience or when the heart takes over our heads. And yet, when I watch my own offspring mystified at Nature’s occult forces, their hands clasped together in awe and desperation, I reminisce the days of yore. Looking at them I wonder – will they be there, if need be, to salvage each others boats when they step into the cold, harsh world as they do it now? The nimbi has enveloped the stratosphere and my two sons run out on the shaded veranda, arm in arm and faces close to one another. I instantly know what will follow- boats in the drain, capsizing, salvages and dream destinations.
And, it’s now that I understand those shades of anxiety fleeting in my mother’s eyes twenty five years back and those silent prayers that accompanied all revelries. She yearned for her little Samaritans to be her milestones of pride and continue blossoming in the divine aura of sibling- ecstasy. WE DO, MUM. We shall always. Rest assured.
Written By : Leena Khan Jha
