I woke up late in the morning. I was running late by 30 minutes. I skipped the breakfast to save time and got ready in a couple of minutes, only to find that I missed my cab.

I had to spend around 200 rupees on auto. During month-ends, INR 200 counts! I could have eaten my lunch and dinner with that amount of money.

I had to report for a meeting at 9:00 and it was already 15 minutes late. Thinking of others waiting for me made me cringe. I was literally begging to the auto driver to drive fast and he doesn't seem impressed with my yells.

I reached the office just before the meeting. I searched my purse to pay the auto driver and found that my wallet was missing. I became red, wordless, in shame. Luckily my colleague chipped in and I was saved.

I could not concentrate in the meeting. Graphs flipped, numbers discussed, nothing went on the mind. My heart was pondering. My ATM cards, debit cards, identification cards and even the money left to survive for the next week were on the wallet.

Lunch with the clients also didn’t go well as my mind was already on the wallet. I felt betrayed, the day is getting worse.

After the long day at the office, I thought to take a walk home to refresh my mind and distract my thoughts.

Out of nowhere, it started raining. I tried running and then gave up. I was totally drenched and had no money in hand. A stranger helped me by offering me a lift and finally reached home.

I changed my dress, logged in to the online banking portals, and blocked my cards. Then searched for the government websites to apply for the duplicate identification cards.

It was still raining cats and dogs. I made a good cup of coffee, sipped it slowly. I felt good.

I wrote a short note of gratitude in my diary. To my colleague who paid my auto charge, the manager who bore with my careless meeting, the client who took me to the lunch and finally to the stranger who gave me the lift home.

It felt so good to offer gratitude. I felt good. A book half read was waiting for me beside the bed table. The warm blanket, the book, the coffee…

Now I am posting this on my Facebook, just to remind everyone. Life is good, even if the day is bad, life is still good.

___________________________________________________________

After typing the inspirational post, Amit felt good.

He started getting notifications about the post. Comments poured in for the post. He felt incredibly happy and satisfied. He felt like a king. After all, this was his only way of expressing his dreams. Dream of getting a job, the dream of having a busy life, the dream of having people around.

Anyways, Inspirational stories doesn’t need to be completely true! He smiled to himself and dozed off to sleep.

He has exams tomorrow. At least this time, 4 years after completing the engineering, he have to pass and get the degree certificate!

She rested her jaw in her left palm revealing her blink as the only sign that she is alive. Breathing became slower and slower as if her body is finally taking its only leave it has. Deep down in her heart she might wished to stop everything and endure the pain but she felt a sudden heat at the center of her palm and it was crawling all over her body. Her blinking suddenly stopped by allowing black eyes to see the world forever and her last breath came as a quiet warm breeze touching her wrist most lovingly.

Even though she had led a quiet life, her mind was always reciting conversations and songs. Somewhere in that life journey she had lost her ability to create sentences through her voice. She always thought that there are somany people out there like her. But that doesn't count, right? Her pain was only for her to suffer.

How are you so quiet?

How come you be so quiet?

Are you always like this?

You are like this in your home too?

First they enquired, then stated by replacing the question marks with periods:

She's always like this.

She's lying about her chirping and fun in her home.

She loves loneliness.

She loves to be alone.

But little they knew that she loved both laugh and smile. By the time they come to know her courage she would be long gone. Sadly that was her plan all along.

That's why she opened the table drawer that day. That's why she took a dull dust painted book and a pencil. She didn't care to find a black pen even though black was all she thought at that very moment. She was used to scribbling and carving in paper but still she conjured courage to move the pencil along the paper with a slow pace and steadiness. The pencil marks become letters and then drawings, each of them linked to the other. Then some letters stretched their arms out to lock the fingers next to them. She watched with numbness the formation of words and sentences outside her mind. Her lips tried so hard to tilt a little to make something resembling a smile.

Her face become as blank as it ever been. Her mind ripped her thoughts out of its net and spreaded it outside. An invisible scattered letters, numbers, symbols, words, emotions, sentences, ideas and who knows what else?

They were probably looking at the point where the pencil nib met the paper. Maybe they were the ones who helped the pencil markings to hold hands. Anyway that had worked. She put down the paper and slide the chair to the desk to be closer to it.

At the very moment the light left her eyes without taking time to say goodbye, I opened my eyes looking into the wooden roof protecting me from cold air and sparkling beauty of stars. I used to know that girl a very long time ago and maybe she is still living in a dark corner of my mind. But acknowledging not only her pain and weakness but her strength and calmness gave me somany reasons to dream by spreading my hard wings. And it still is my lever to wish, to dream, to imagine and to achieve that lost girls dream.

"The City of Pearls" - How often does an illustration literally meets perfection? Well..for me, it does.

Love at first sight is no exaggeration. How do I know? I started loving her at the first sight itself. She carried me, nourished me from her own body, wounded herself for bringing me to this world, fed me from her own body, taught me patiently, loved me more than anything else in this world. How could I not love her then?

The sea of Time, the only resource and power man has not yet been able to harness,  flowed by with all its might tearing against the hull of my Life's boat,  trying to capsize it. I rowed with all my might against it, trying not to drown. I held on to the sides of my boat,  watching her drift away, helpless, and numb in the harsh cold waters and wind.

As the storm subsided and the seas calmed down, I crawled into my  boat and watched her being saved by another ship far away.  With a vexed heart, but a relieved mind, I watched them sail away as I started to sail towards my destination. I was in the pretention that I could still reach my destination alone.

Oh God, how wrong was I ? The destination which I was so sure of seemed to be so obscure without her. The days which I rowed without her where the most longest and the nights where the most darkest. The compass that guided me this long has been lost in the storm. I sailed helplessly, with despair through all of those days and nights, in hope I would see her.

I frantically sailed now, hoping to reach the shore fast, where I was hoping to meet her. Toiled and bruised, I was washed up ashore. There she was, my most precious Pearl, making me falling in love with her again. I, being stubborn, eventhough my mind was at its highest peak, failed to show her my happiness. She, all knowing, all enduring, just wrapped her up in her arms. I understood that I loved her at every sight, not just the first one.

I came to know from the stories of the sea that the sailors who saved her, had their own toll of sea and storms to fight against, with their boat's fullest capacity, yet was ready to accomodate my  box of treasure, without even the expectation of a single stone from it. Eyes and mind filled with gratitude was covered by a lip of smile on seeing them, the pearls which added to my box of treasure.

Everyone finds their treasures in the seas. I found my pearls in this city, of light, of stark contrast and of hope. Leaving my pearls on this shore, hoping them to be in safe custody, I set sail again...

Hey, Don’t you feel it !! Your little baby is making a move !!

My wife always use to get excited right from her 2nd trimester whenever our baby use to make some movement which was of great ecstasy for her. Days were gone and that time came in.. She woke me up and said that she wasn’t feeling well and the symptoms seems to have shown up.  I was really tensed and was really feeling the fragileness of my mind. If I took another glimpse of her face, I would have wept. Like any men, I don’t want my girl to see me down at least that day and kept myself under control.

It was all of a sudden the doctors started rushing to the casualty (Like we do see in many films J ), and then an elderly head nurse came towards me demanding my signature for a C-Section. I would never forget that moment of my life and would have never signed so ugly until that date. It was like a hell of a moment where so many things came up to my mind and were whispering to me. I would really call this moment as a faith restoration point, where we would really turn up towards the almighty seeking his help. Moments later, they handed over to me my cute little baby boy. I couldn’t pretend anymore. Seeing his innocent face, I just broke myself and wept. Thought of giving my boy my first kiss, She stopped me doing so. She had a lot many medical terms to shower upon me explaining the stage of my baby boy. His breathe rate seems to have a slower pace and they have to place him in NICU, that was all what I understood. I inquired about my wife and they said “She is OK” which was of great relief to me.  

They shifted my wife to ICU and I had to wait for hours until they allowed me to see her. As soon as I went near her, all she asked was about our baby and she needs to see him. I could barely help her with that as they were not ready to take my baby outside of the NICU for any sake and thus I could only tell her that he is under observation. Undergone a C-Section, she wasn’t really able to speak but still she was keeping on asking to see her baby. I went outside the ICU where I could see another family who were in great joy (that family was blessed with a baby girl). I requested the baby’s dad to just have her in my arms for a minute. He was really happy to hand over the baby to me. I opened the ICU door half the way and showed the fully covered baby to my wife conveying the message through site that “Our baby is OK, He is safe with me”. She just smiled and that was all what I need. I handed over that cute baby girl – who had a wrist band written “Baby of D----- “ to their family back. Really I don’t remember the name of her mom, I would say that it was written as Daffodil. She was a cute little Daffodil, unknown for me who came up for a moment to my life but made our day.

Daffodil Queen Where Ever u R – Thank You J

Thanks to Almighty

Chapter 1 – A Wail

(2009 - One morning in Kulangara Village, near Thiruvananthapuram.) 

Malathi told her daughter Meenakshi “Meenu wake up, it is time to go for tuition.  Every day you get up early to attend tuition class.  Why are you oversleeping today?”  Little did that mother knew that her daughter was not actually sleeping.  She was simply lying in the bed with eyes wide open.  She could not sleep a bit last night.

Meenakshi Menon lived with her mother in Kulangara Village which is 30 km away from the capital city, Thiruvananthapuram.  She was an 18-year-old student who is doing Bachelor of Arts at St Joseph College, Thiruvananthapuram.  Her father passed away ten years back in a bike accident while coming back from work late at night.  Her mother eked out a living by running a tailoring shop at the village.  Her father was a hardworking man and he was able to buy a five-cent plot and construct a small two-bedroom house.  Mother and the daughter lived a contented life amid all their financial agonies.

Malathi’s only solace was her daughter was a go-getter.  Even at this age she had a clear vision.  Despite having good marks in plus two, Meenakshi didn’t choose either science main or maths main.  It was not just their financial situation that prevented Meenakshi from taking up those much sought after subjects, but deep inside she harbored the dream of cracking Civil Service.  Being a big fan of Dr.Abdul Kalam, it happened to her naturally.  In fact, she read “Wings of Fire” and “Ignited Minds” ‘n” number of times.

Malathi came to Meenakshi’s room saying “I have been calling you since 6 o’clock and are you still sleeping?”  When Malathi entered the room she saw her daughter simply lying in the bed, her eyes staring at the ceiling vacantly.  Being a mother who had known the pulse of her daughter, Malathi sensed something amiss.

Meenakshi was a fair girl and has looks that boys would die for.  Her expressive eyes, long hair had astrayed many a boys at the college.  Being a girl who wants to make it big in life, she didn’t pay much attention to beautify herself.  What she didn’t realize was even with minimal make up she was powerful enough to make heads turn.  Her upbeat attitude and friendly nature earned her lot of friendships and acquaintances.  She was at ease with boys.  Apart from sports, elocution was her favorite topics and she garnered a few trophies for that during college youth festivals.

“Amma, henceforth I am not going for tuition at Vijay’s house” Meenakshi said point-blank.  Malathi got a bit irritated on hearing this “You call your teacher by his name, you should say Vijay sir.  It is said that teachers are our second parents”. 

Vijay Thampi was a 46-year-old middle-aged English teacher.  In fact he was the favorite English teacher in the village.  Apart from teaching, he took part in social activities in the village, in fact that made him a household name in the village.  But when it came to teaching he was one of those English teachers who taught English mostly in Malayalam.  Though his teaching credentials were not in tune with the time, English being a bugbear for villagers, he enjoyed much respect as an English teacher.  Ironically, in spite of being an English teacher, nobody had heard him speaking a sentence in English outside classroom.        

Malathi noticed tears are rolling down her daughter’s eyes.  Meenakshi said “He is not a teacher, he is a wolf in sheep’s clothes”.  Malathi was taken aback on hearing this.  She said “WHAT?”

Meenakshi continued “Amma I have been noticing it ever since I joined two months back that he is leching at me, he is using double entendre with a student who is as young as his daughter.  His social activities and sociable nature are just a façade for his mean intentions”.  Malathi’s eyes popped and jaw dropped.  The mother felt like the ground below her was breaking.  Meenakshi proceeded further “Amma I thought it ends with his sleazy language, but yesterday he crossed the limit.  As you know, he gives me special tuition when his wife wasn’t there.  Yesterday while I was writing the notes he was giving me, he held my hands by sitting across me.  I pulled my hands back suddenly.  After some time he started rubbing his legs against mine under the table with a vice smile on his face to which I moved back my legs at once.  Worse still, he leaned forward and started kissing me like crazy and his hands then…..”.  Meenakshi went into a wail before completing that sentence.  After a pause she narrated “I beat him with my bag that came handy and somehow managed to escape from his house.  I never expected such dirty moves from a teacher”  She started sobbing on saying this.  Malathi was shell shocked on hearing this.  She didn’t know how to console her beloved daughter who was falling into pieces.             

There was a brief moment of silence between the mother and the daughter.  Malathi’s silence slowly gave way to wails.  In-between wails she uttered “How would we tell this to the villagers?  Who is going to believe us?  That crooked fellow has a clean image in front of the villagers.  If at all we make the villagers aware of the danger of sending girls for tuitions at his house, what would be your future after letting this truth out?  After all, you are a girl who should be married off and sent to another house to live?  I am afraid if we don’t confine this within the four walls of our house, you will be marked for life”.

Meenakshi didn’t go for the tuition at Vijay’s house for the next two days.  Smelling a rat, Vijay decided to drop in at Meenakshi’s house to know the situation.  When he stopped his scooter at the gate of Meenakshi’s house, Malathi was sweeping the courtyard with a broom.  Pretending as if nothing had happened Vijay enquired “Malathi, Meenakshi is not coming for tuition for the last couple of days.  She is not a girl who misses classes unnecessarily.  What happened?  Is she unwell?”  Malathi was seething with anger. she burst out “As you said, she is not a girl who misses classes at the drop of a hat.  You know the reason”.  Vijay tried all the tricks of the trade to maintain his so-called clean-image, he tried to clarify further “Malathi, listen, Meenakshi misunderstood me.  You know me well.  Moreover, the whole village knows me who I am so….”  Before he could finish his drama Malathi cut him short by saying “Enough is enough, get out of my place or else you will get one from me, see I am holding the broom”.

Vijay realized that he fell flat in the face.  On hearing this altercation Meenakshi came rushing as she was writing her assignment to be submitted at college the very next day.  On seeing Vijay at the gate, Meenakshi was fuming.  Vijay was wicked to the core, he started ranting “Villagers believe only what I say.  Not only daughter, mother is also young as well.  If you let anybody else know about this incident, I know how to drive you and your mother away from this village.  Villagers are already saying males visit this house in the wee hours”.  Cunning Vijay gave the helpless mother and daughter a hint as to what the game he was going to play to oust Malathi and Meenakshi from the village.      

 Chapter 2 – Life at LBSNAA

(2013 – Venue for UPSC Personality Test, New Delhi)

Meenakshi will be called anytime into the interview room.  She has come a long way, faced a lot of odds.  While waiting for her name to be called, all her life’s journey till the waiting room outside the interview hall passed through her mind in a flash.  

Soon after she was called inside.  She was facing a panel of judges.  Three sober-looking gentlemen were sitting across her.  After a round of ice-breaking questions, tone of the interview was upped.

Interviewer:  What is ping-pong ball?

Meenakshi:  Ball used in playing table tennis (it came to her naturally as she used to play table tennis during her college days.)

Interviewer:  What makes a person successful in Civil Service?

Meenakshi:  First of all you should have that bend of mind to serve the people and the nation in good faith.  If you have that quality, all other factors that make a person successful in Civil Service will fall in place automatically.

That marked the end of the interview.  Meenakshi has come a long way in her life.  She has already cleared her Mains of Civil Service and her Personality Test was over.  She was fully confident when she came out of the interview room.  As expected she was selected and needless to say joy knew no bounds at her small house in Kulangara village.  Malathi felt contented that though she brought Meenakshi up amid a lot of misery, Meenakshi finally made her proud.  Malathi said in her mind “Meenakshi is not a girl who just dreams, but that rare one who takes that extra step to realize it”.      

Finally, Meenakshi arrived at Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration or LBSBAA, Mussoorie to be groomed as an able Civil Servant.  The campus is located at the foothills of enchanting Himalayas.  There she met a lot of new recruits and an air of vigor reverberated in the air.     

On cracking the hard nut called Civil Service, one becomes an Officer Trainee here.  He/She is supposed to spend the next two year here.  For Meenakshi it was a welcome change as she has not been anywhere else in her life other than Kerala and she always wanted to feel the mighty Himalayas.  The training at the campus was a mix of academics and outdoor activities.  Making the officer trainees mentally and physically sound to lead a bureaucrat’s hectic and eventful life.  During the course there, Meenakshi got to interact with luminaries from public life as well as civil servants who carved a niche for themselves in their professional life.  Sharing their experiences and wisdom gave Meenakshi a glimpse as to what awaited outside once the training is over.  Being a sporty person at school and college what attracted her the most was an officer trainee is supposed to take part in sporting activities which range from horse riding to river rafting.      

Meenakshi’s affable nature made her friends with her batch mates who came from almost all states in India.  At LBSNAA a day began at 6 o’clock in the morning with physical activities.  Academics commenced at 9 am and ended at 5 pm.  Meenakshi enjoyed her evening there with her friends, watching cultural programs organized on the campus.  Everybody is free to mingle with each other and exchange notes.  Meenakshi and her friends organized a charity work at nearby old-age home on a Sunday.  However busy she is, she made it a point to call her mother everyday.  Not a single day passed without talking to her beloved mother and she gratefully reminisced her mother’s care and hard work, after all it was her mother’s unrelenting support that made her eventually land on one of the finest campuses in India.   

Meenakshi’s course at LBSNAA came to and end.  During the last month of the training all her batch mates arranged a farewell party and Meenakshi was now looking forward to take on the role of a civil servant in the outside world.

On finishing the course what she took home was the study tour she had with her batch mates named “Parikrama” where she traversed the entire length and breadth of the country meeting ordinary people, bureaucrats and NGOs doing exemplary work in the country.  Meenakshi said to herself “These people who make a lot of positive different in the society don’t make newspaper headlines.  What grabs newspaper headlines is always negative news, phew!” 

A part of her wanted to continue in the beautiful Mussorie campus, but she knew she had to move forward.  Robert Frost famous poem came to her mind then “The woods are lovely, dark and deep, but I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep.”

Chapter 3 – Chickens are Coming Home to Roost

2017

13,568 km afar from India, in United States a movement was raging, #MeToo, spearheaded by actress Alyssa Milano who encouraged popularizing the hash tag in an attempt to get public attention to sexual assault.  The hash tag MeToo got re-tweeted more than 200,000 times a day across the globe, making it a sort of global movement. #MeToo was gaining widespread popularity day by day with millions of people using the has tag echoing the story of sexual harassment that they suffered in isolation.

In a country like India where 80% of the sexual harassment cases go unreported MeToo was a moment that opened the floodgates of pent-up emotions.  Bold women in India came forward with shocking accounts of sexual harassment.  Needless to say, lot of so-called gentlemen started losing sleep.  Celebrities from all walks of society, ranging from media to films to politics to literature felt the heat of the moment.

Famous personalities from the film and politics showed support towards victims of sexual harassment.  Some said they will no longer work with people who were charged with sexual assault.  People working in different industries came out to help create a safe and dignified atmosphere for marginalized women.  Some said it was about time to learn to treat women with respect.  Finally, the truth started being told loud and clear, the truth that was powerful enough to shaken the forts of high and mighty

2018

Meenakshi was working as a Sub Divisional Magistrate at Civil Lines Delhi.  Being a fast learner she learnt the ropes of the job pretty fast.  Malathi didn’t have to toil anymore in her tailoring shop in the village.  She took her mother under her wings.  With persistence and perseverance this mother and daughter turned all adversities into opportunities and they lived a happy and contented life in the capital city of India.  Their only worry was missing their homeland. 

“MeToo moment came late, but it will be transformative”, “Skeletons are coming out of the closet”.  While scanning the newspaper in the morning before Meenakshi’s routine journey to office her eyes got caught at these headlines.  It piqued her curiosity.  She gave a big salute in the mind to all those women who dared to speak up the ordeal of sexual harassment by putting a lot at stake.  Vijay Thampi’s face came to her mind and she vowed “if I ever get an opportunity, I would certainly tear his pseudo image into pieces.”  She thought how many girls might have suffered at his hands and by covering it up for dignity would only give further fuel to these miscreants to continue with their shenanigans.

That day while being chauffeured to office she reflected upon the winds of change blowing in India.  She found it as a welcome change that if you don’t treat women with respect, today or tomorrow you will lose your space in the society.  While she was getting engaged in her routine work she was called by her senior Aswini Thakkar who belonged to the 1993 IAS batch.

Aswini Thakkar:  You should gimme a treat?

Meenakshi:  What for sir? Certainly it isn’t my birthday today

Aswini Thakkar:  Well, it has been a long pending request of yours that you are missing your homeland.  Mr Prathat Singh who was the  District Collector of Thiruvananthapuram is promoted to the rank of Defense Secretary of India.  As a mark of respect to your meritorious service, you are being promoted as the District Collector of Thiruvananthapuram.

Meenakshi couldn’t believe what she heard.  She was ecstatic to say the least, but being a responsible civil servant she said “Sir, Thank you for this very happy news.  Wherever I am, I will do my duty without fear or favor and do my duty to the best of my ability.  Yes sir, I owe you a treat”.

Meenakshi and her mother reached their home town and two days after relocating to Thiruvananthapuram collectorate she went to their house at Kulangara village.  Though she was in Delhi, she made sure house was kept well and properly maintained as it was from there she started her journey.

People in the village were so proud of Meenakshi’s achievement and on hearing her arrival at the village a group of men who belonged to Netaji Library at the village approached her.

Men:  Meenu, you made us all proud.  In fact, the whole village is proud of you.  You are an inspiration to hundreds of children who want to make it big in life.

Meenakshi was surprised and didn’t know how to thank them for these kind words.  They continued “Our library has decided to organize a small function to felicitate you.  Please don’t say no.  Being fellow villagers it is our right to do so”           

Though Meenakshi didn’t want to enjoy the status of “someone special” among the people she knew personally, she finally gave in to their coercion.  One of the men in group said “Meenu, we have already discussed the matter with the Panchayat Member, Vijay sir and he already agreed to preside over the function.”  Those words came as shockwaves to her.  Without showing any semblance of bewilderment she asked “Vijay sir, Panchayat President?” to which the man replied “Yes Meenu, he contested last elections to local bodies and he is now the Panchayat President of Kulangara village.  Meenakshi agreed to attend the function to be held next week at the Panchayat Hall auditorium and sent the men back.  She was very determined in her mind.  She said to herself “This is a God-sent opportunity to speak up truth about Vijay”.  Meenakshi shared her gut-feeling with her mother and that bold mother was also in support of her daugher’s decision as she also felt it was time to call spade a spade.     

The day of the felicitation ceremony dawned and the villagers, especially the students, thronged the auditorium to hear what their Meenu chechi had to say.  After playing the national anthem the function began.  The secretary of the Netaji Library welcomed everyone, including Meenakshi and Vijay, to the function and invited Vijay to hand over the memento to Meenakshi and speak a few words about Meenakshi.  To Meenakshi’s surprise, Vijay does not have any qualms in doing that though Vijay could not look Meenakshi in the eye while delivering the memento.

Vijay came to the lectern and started his speech coated with all the trappings that politicians use to win the heart of the listeners.

Vijay:  I don’t know how many of you would know, this Meenakshi was a dear student of mine.  She was very hardworking and obedient.  Then itself I was sure that she would make it big in life and to be frank it is not surprise to me that she is now our District Collector.  She broke the myth that students from small towns cannot make it big in life.  It is her sheer dedication and her mother’s unrelenting support that made her realize her dream career.

Vijay spoke about half an hour about Meenakshi and her success story.  On hearing this Meenakshi sat stoically because apart from sharing her success story with villagers she had a bigger mission - a mission to show the villagers who really was the so-called Vijay sir.

Next was Meenakshi’s turn to speak.  She shared with the audience her vision that it is quite possible to realize our goals in life with passion and patience.  She reiterated the fact that most of the people gathered here know about her humble beginning.  She spoke how the writings of Dr.Abdul Kalam inspired her to dream big.  Villagers listened to her with rapt attention.  She said she is going to contribute books worth rupees thirty thousand to the Netaji Library, which the audience received with a resounding applause.  Meenakshi further added after a pause “Before concluding the speech, I want to make a revelation.  As you all know, MeToo revelations are happening all over the world and people who disrespect women are getting marginalized and facing legal hurdles.  A lot of people are keeping the façade of a gentleman before the society, whereas they spew venom against people who are helpless.  It’s time for us to reject such spurious people and bring them to book.  This well-respected Vijay sir is a scoundrel in real life.  As he said, once I was his student but then he used to BAD TOUCH ME!  When I realized this and stopped going for tuition at his house, he came to my house with threats that if I ever opened this up I and my mother would be banished by using his political clout.  Today I dare to speak up the truth and challenge him to banish me.  If I conceal this incident from all of you, he will keep on continuing his wickedness and lot of innocent children will fall prey to him.  This vicious game of vice men like his should be stopped at any cost.  If a lady speaks something like this she can lose a lot, she is putting his life on the line of fire.  Still she dares to speak up something like this.  It shows there is truth in it and instead of vilifying and questioning their intent the whole society should support such women.  Somebody should speak the truth and we should stand with the truth”.

Meenakshi’s sharp words came like bolt out of the blue for Vijay.  He didn’t know what to say or how to escape the wrath of the audience.  Soon after Meenakshi’s revelation, the next day itself Women’s Commission slapped the case of sexual harassment against Vijay and he was forced to resign.  His party also disowned him and suspended him.  MeToo moment started a year back.  A seemingly simple tweet has now become a global phenomenon and a symbol of resistance against sexual harassment.  The good part is the society is wakening upto the magnitude of the problem.  It’s about time…

Thampy’s group is a leading business establishment in central Travancore of Kerala. Thampy, a gulf returnee, started some establishments and within years he grew from prosperity to prosperity. Today is August 15th, 2018. India is celebrating 71 years of independence and Thampy is watching celebrations in television. His wife is busy making puttu and beef curry.

“Ting tong” rang the calling bell, Thampy chayan got up from his seat half heartedly, as he don’t see his children around to open the door (they are busy with mobile and tab in whatsap). As he glanced through the window, he see a group of people and thinks loudly of where the hell the security got vanished, as how come these mob got into his house. Hearing this, his wife yells that it’s a public holiday and unless a servant is paid properly, how come he do his job. Though not keen, just to dispose them, Thampy opened the door and asked who they are. Then one of their members, an young girl introduced themselves as a social organization supporting rehabilitation of Okhi affected fishermen family. By hearing this, our achayan got the crux and told that Okhi and all was last year and we gave lot of money, food and cloths and there is no need for any more fund raiser. But to get rid, he took fifty rupees and gave. There was an educated person in the group and he briefed the need to support such initiatives and later they all went.

                As Thampy was about to close the door, came his distant brother in law, Kunjukunju, a middle aged man from Aranmula. About Kunjukunju, he is a foody, but a typical farmer kind of casual guy. He got astonished by seeing the palatious house and kept finger on his moosh. He said to himself, what a big house, worth enough to stay here for a week. Hearing this, gave butterflies in our achayan’s mind and body and he said, my brother, don’t feel bad, when we make beef, some beggars will come to eat it, I am generally talking, its not about you. Never mind for Kunjukunju, he settled down and started asking for ammama as he had some country made food items from “tharavadu” like chips, achappam etc….

                Later he revealed the purpose of his visit as some financial aid to bring his daugher up in professional studies. Hearing this, Thampy has the best of his shock as he is least keen to give even a thousand rupee to Kunjukunju. As time go by, Kunjukunju gets impatient to get somme food and to taste a bit of hot drinks keeps on asking for something special, but thampy and his wife gracefully denies all those saying, they don’t have anything special and only porridge may be there. He askes for beef fry and he says I get a smell. But ammama says its prepared at neighborhood and not here

When children come and ask for food, she says to order in Uber eats and keep it at first floor as to avoid the intruder (kunjukunju) taking food. As they speak English, poor guy don’t understand the conversations and he pleads for food. But whom to listen, all are busy swiping and chatting in mobiles. He advises them not to waste time like this, rather to use it productively. To his surprise, no one listens him, he gets pist and plans to go out. As he is about to go, Thampy’s daughter asks who is this guy. Then kunjukunju proudly say he is her uncle. But she doesn’t give much respect to him and walks away.  

As Kunjunju was sitting and reading newspaper in sit out, day slipped into night. Soon he realized that water level was getting higher in car porch etc. He rushed in and wanted to tell that to his brother in law, but by then they were all panic as news and whatsap, facebook all were alerting about flood and that dams were opened due to heavy rain fall. He asked whether the house was built after filling paddy field and if it’s the case, it will be submerged in water. Soon water started getting into house. It started making all costly items wet. As level rose, Thampy realized the situation and urged all to take things to first floor. As a team they lifted all things possible.

As usual channels started debate and discussions of it it’s a fault of government, how we can make rescue more faster etc. Thampy and family survived  on terrace for three days, before they were rescued by few good fishermen. They reached a rescue home.

Initially the family found it very tough to be in terms with the facilities there, the cleanliness of bathrooms etc. But what to do, there is no other go. Slowly they got accustomed to it. They had a Onam celebration with the inmates there. Later in his experience sharing, Thampy said that it was one of the best Onam that he had and also he realized how others are sociable and take care of each other.  He offered ten percent of his savings for the rehabilitation of flood affected victims. Kunjukunju then said in mind that though flood made lot of damage and took life of many, it did wash away the dirt in many people’s mind.

One last time before I close my eyes forever, once again wanted to fly higher than eagle but people said I couldn't because I was human. My grandfather flew high, when everyone kept crying at his death bed, couldn't see my mom weep much. She didn't weep this much when she was playing around with Shridhar Uncle the other day in his backyard. Cherries outside Shridhar Uncle's backyard were very desirous, my grandfather saw Shridhar Uncle and my mom playing together. Having my grandfather around, I ran away, he was a temperamental. When I came to Dison house to run along the road, saw lot of people gather around my house and my mother told me my grandfather flew away. So, my father came after 3 years of his stay in faraway gulf, my aunt's used to taunt my mom very often that he was locked up in prison for murder, I guessed weapon would have been belt. Sridhar Uncle no more used to give chocolates to me. When my father came at my grandfather's funeral, shock waves moved in my skin. I didn't much like him since my birth, other day he came and beat me up for selling up his old belongings. I was haunted for days as he kept yelling at everybody how precious box was. Govindan kutty from neighborhood paid me for the box from his girlfriend's pocket money, yet I didn't tell my father. Box went to Govindan's girlfriend, she told me there were old pieces of lady's clothing which her mother took away from her, she said her mother had the other half of piece in her wardrobe and their backyard was my only favorite place where I get cherries.
 One day I ran away from my house when my dad beat me up calling me 'Bastard', I didn't knew what he mean though. I kept running as a far as possible. New place was warmer and at many railway station distance from home but there was no place to sleep and food had to be borrowed when nobody was around, willing to give among people were scarce. Day after day, learnt some tricks to borrow food and got a shelter at a nearby building, no body used to live there. Other day when I was borrowing food when nobody was present in that hotel, owner used to yell at me many times. He gave food and all I had to do was take vessels with water to people. He was a photographer, he used to click photos from his table, one-day one customer didn't like the photos so customer was screaming too, customer looked at me which reminded me of my father with his belt, I ran again, this time I was flying down the streets from one narrow lane to another. 
A good Samaritan saved me and pulled me into his home, he had huge black bricks, which were taped and had wires coming out, there were other people too with long beards and no mustache. They were very helpful and pulled me inside into further rooms, there were many kids like me but they were thin and looked tanned. Day later, I was given a uniform to wear and it had those black bricks with wires in them. I do not know if they were giving jacket for free as I did not had any money, they sealed it tying around my waist and I could not show off any of those amazing good looking wires while I was walking down the street with those kids. A man was leading us, suddenly there were people running around us, somebody caught me, took away my new jacket and made me run when I heard a sound in my backyard. I saw people falling down, may be they wanted to rest may be they would have run from home too after all everyone was running and there was no body who had any shops open where I can borrow any food. Next day I was roaming around to get something to eat, a food stall owner asked if I can work for him, I said ok and then I was getting daily food, he was very kind. Only I had one problem I missed playing around with Govindan Kutty. Stall owner was the kindest person, he used to be angry like my dad but he would give me food like my mom. I wanted to work forever for him. One day, a group of people came and took me with them scolding stall owner, I was not willing to go but they gave me fresh clothes, a place to bathe in and then there was a feast without having to borrow anything, everyone around me were so nice. They took me to a home; they were saying word 'Shelter' too often, I could not understand. When I went in, place was different from those bearded men, nobody spoke anything for days. When I was accepted one amongst many, I too became a member of silence with the rest. One fine night, I heard a boy crying from a distance from Warden's room when my roommates turned to me quietly, asked me if I could join them. It was dark and we ran out of that home. Warden caught hold of me while rest escaped. Feeling was not so nice afterwards. Days were not so energetic anymore and I could not understand why warden does not appear nice to me. There were no more feasts no borrowing besides I had not strength, closing my eyes seems natural, peaceful and sun above did shine manifolds. I wish I can fly again. Suddenly a dog came, left food. I ate, it was not tasty and smell too was not so good. All the nice feelings just swept away from me, city now looked stranger.
Hence, I went to Stall Owner again.

"Wild Wild city
What a maze you are?
Innocence is lost somewhere
All one see is brick and mortar"

Bang! He smacked his head on the table and everyone around him glanced off from their monitors and stared at him ! He was frustrated, agonized moreover fed up with his life. The bossy and the never satisfied client has pretty much ruined his peace. Ten years of IT life has gifted him a poor eyesight and severe backpain due to prolonged hours of sitting." I could have quit easily If I weren't having the home loan ! " he said to himself. Stood up from his chair, he walked towards the glassy wall to catch some greenery. Suddenly, something caught his eye. Is it a bird , No.. Then what's it ! Something weirdly hanging on the opposite building.

     On a closer look, he sees a man swinging in the air  on a thin thread and cleaning the glassy windows. He doesn't have much safety precautions. One moment of carelessness could seriously damage his life.Why is he doing this despite the dangers !! Does he also have a home loan strangled around his neck ? Can't be.. He is doing it only because he got mouths to feed.. Two minutes of silence.. our guy came back to his seat with eternal peace,  counting all the blessings that he has got in his life ! 

Why us?

Wow. That’s too generic. Give me some context.

Why were we burdened with conscience? This dreary sense of existence is overwhelming.

Dreary, is it? I thought otherwise. I felt your lot loved the sense of being. Many of you are in eternal love with the pointless pursuit of the purpose of life.

You feel it’s pointless?

If you ask me, you would be better off living our life rather than pondering over its meaning.

Well, there lies the problem. You see, living the life is not as easy as it sounds. Thanks to the superior intelligence, we are in a state where we have to make informed decisions in every minute of our lives. Some decisions are easy. Most are not. We have to weigh the benefits against the damages and arrive at a trade-off.

And that’s the beauty of it. A decision you make has the power of transforming someone’s life entirely.

Which is why deciding is difficult. Birds have it easy. They just fly around all day, and go back to their nests when they are tired.

You feel birds have it easy?

At least they are free.

And you are not?

Free choice is a myth.

Could you elaborate?

I could write a poem on it.

No, thanks. Poetry is not my style. Anyway, consider this. Your free birds build their nests on trees, which you cut down to make frames for your windows or tissue papers to wipe yourself dry. One fine evening, the bird flies back only to find that the nest no longer exists. So much for their freedom. You talked about how you are a victim of your intelligence. Turns out that you have made good use of it. Cosy homes, super fast cars, smart devices, delicious cuisine...all this when the mighty lions lay naked in the cold nights and the majestic elephants still eat raw palm leaves. You undervalue what you possess. You are…

The predator and the prey?

In a way, yes.

But where have this intelligence taken us? We are fighting each other all the time. We keep coming up with newer things to fight over when we grow sick of the things over which we were fighting in the first place. We fight over land, over gold, over trade, oil, space, race, nuclear deals. You name it, we fight over it! Of all these, you are an all time favorite. W never grow tired of fighting over you. I have lost count of the number of names we have given you. How do you look at it?

I find it interesting. Here is what I did. I learnt all your languages - Hebrew, Latin, Sanskrit, Greek, Roman, Tamil, Japanese - so that I could manifest myself in the different forms you have given me. It is funny, you know. No matter in what name I am invoked, the needs remain more or less the same. Happiness, love, money, health, peace - almost everyone asks for these. You might ask for love in English, and this other person would be asking for inner peace in Malayalam. I listen to all of you. Yet you accept me in the way you like, and reject the other forms of me.

I am the believer and the non believer?

Not just you. The whole lot. Yeah you get the idea.

If you are as powerful as you claim to be, why don’t you grant us the virtues we all ask for?

I do. All the happiness, health and peace you see around? They are all my doing.

Oh Really! What about the other side? Bone cancer in infants! What about it, eh? The volcanoes in Japan. Hurricanes in America. Earthquakes in Indonesia?

You know who to blame for that?

Who?

We do not speak that name around here.

Are you going to blame the Devil for all the miseries?

Speak of the Devil.

Why don’t you just destroy the Devil, then?

Devil is essential to my existence. We lay perfectly balanced, as all things should be.

Can I ask you something?

You have been asking a lot today.

Is the Devil for real? Or is it a simple lie you sold us to explain your ill doings?

My ill-doings! What do I have to gain by causing you pain?

I don’t know. Some  just want to watch the world burn.

Not arguing with that. So you assume there is no Devil. You mentioned nuclear wars, didn’t you? What about those? I don’t remember making any nuclear bombs. Oh wait - it was you.

What are you suggesting? That we are as much Devil as much as you are?

Maybe you and I are not so different.

Would you stop quoting movies?

Why? Movies are a reflection of the human minds. All art forms are. And it was you who came up with art. Music, dance, pictures, sculptures, books - all of it came from you. You composed melodies, and built worlds and characters just like I did. Tell me this. Would Krishna be complete without Kamsa? Judas had paved way for Jesus’ resurrection. Julius Caesar would have been just another ruler had not Brutus betrayed him. Ram and Ravan. Harry POtter and Lord Voldemort. The Batman and The Joker! All these are as epic as Laila Majnu, or Krishna Radha, or Romeo Juliet. Name one great piece of art that you made which is devoid of evil.

…

You see?

I do, indeed. You are me.

No! I am bigger than that.

You are a part of me. Or I am a part of you. Perhaps it's all inside my head.

Do you really feel so?

I am the Devil. I am the God.

That’s quite a statement.

***

Fifty six year old Jagannath woke his wife, Bhoomi, up. The clock ticked past two.

Bhoomi: What?

Jagannath: Do you hear that voice?

Bhoomi: What voice?

Jagannath: Listen. It’s from Adi’s room. I wonder who he is calling at this hour of the night.

Bhoomi: I do not really think that he is on the phone. I guess he is talking to himself.

Jagannath: Again! Should we take him to the counselor?

Bhoomi: Don’t bother. He might just be having a bad dream. I will ask him to pray before going to bed. The boy questions faith a lot these days.

Jagannath: God help our kid!

              Robert was going back from work after a long day, his police car sirens off so as not to alert anyone nor to wake the sleeping residents of Pecker’s Street. The night was cold and warm and the streets were empty while he slowly drove his car while humming a tune to himself. Suddenly, he noticed a black Chevrolet Impala car bit lopsided from the street and parked in an awkward angle towards a nearby tree. Robert put his car sirens on and pulled behind the parked car; after checking his service pistol was in place, he slowly opened the door and moved towards the stopped Impala.

                Robert noticed that there were scratches on the left side of the car. He couldn’t see the insides due to the tinted windows, he just knocked on the glass and asked: ”Is anybody inside, this is Robert from Sheriff’s County department; if anybody is in please open the door and put your hands where I can see them”. Nobody replied and Robert could feel the adrenaline rush in his body. He took the pistol from the holster and held it firm in his right hand and slowly tried to open the front driver side door. The door opened with a click and he could see a man in his mid-thirties in the driving seat who was shot on the head, blood had splattered everywhere. A bottle of gin was on his lap, which was almost empty. Robert felt his stomach churning, he quickly ran back to his car and messaged via the police radio: “Man shot dead in Pecker’s street, calling immediate assistance; no signs of suspect.”

                     It was half past midnight and the officers were conducting their research on the car. Robert had found that the victim was William Peters, an automobile salesman, identified from the driving license he got from the body. The victim had his purse, license with him and so he had overruled ‘theft’ as a motive. As luck would favour it, the murder weapon, a Smith & Wesson Shield 9mm handgun, was found under the co-driver seat, making his fellow officers calling the murderer an ‘amateur’. The weapon and the car was traced back to Jane Jenner, a former ballet performer and celebrity who lived a few miles away. Robert didn’t knew how Janet, his colleague did it that fast but he was not in the mood to go home unless he got hold of the culprit. It was 3 A.M in the morning when they rushed towards Jane’s residence; she had lived there after her much publicized divorce from business magnate Stephen Gertrude, who was in marine business.

                      Robert was shocked to find the front door was open and once entered he could see a lady, almost drenched in blood sleeping on the sofa. She had a high heel on one feet alone and was sleeping. Janet motioned Robert that she would do the talking and tried to call her up. She was beautiful with blond hair but looked terrified on waking up telling:” I didn’t do it; I didn’t mean to.” Janet made her sit up and asked: “Are you Jane Jenner?” She looked perplexed but nodded in agreement, her eyes frequenting between Robert and Janet. Janet held her hands and said:” Madam, we have few questions to ask. Do you know Mr. William Peters?” Her eyes were terrified when she mumbled “We went to dance together.” Janet looked affirmatively at Robert and asked: “Did he drive you home? What happened between you two?” Jane shook her head while telling “I can’t remember; I am drunk, the car was moving.” Her eyes half closed as she fell asleep again, possibly she was drunk high.

                    Jane was arrested on “suspicion” of murder and the media went on frenzy. Her estranged husband had hired a defense attorney named Sean Sheppard who claimed the prosecution’s case was purely circumstantial, as there were no eyewitnesses or solid evidence. Sheppard even came up with a claim how William was undergoing a treatment for depression and might have shot himself. Sheppard had a reputation of saving his clients at any cost for which he always charged a fortune. The trial started and the prosecution was not able to connect Jane to the murder, except she had met the victim earlier (no eye witnesses could attest to that on that particular day) as per her own words, which Sheppard challenged was a misunderstanding Jane had made while in an inebriated state. Jane was silent all over the trial, looking blank most of the time, while the media called her Pecker County Jail’s most stylish woman. The only statement she made while surrounded once by the press was “No woman can love a man enough to kill him” while Sheppard didn’t allow her to speak more while he escorted her to a black limousine, shielding her from the paparazzi.

                     When the trial started, the panel of judges were all males, headed by Arthur Penn, who was known for ‘quick judgements’, that lead the media again to a heated speculation that Jane was not getting a fair trial and she was being ‘cornered’ and was the real victim as she had become an alcoholic only after her divorce. The police found no other evidence connecting Jane to the murder, although Robert claimed that the car and gun was enough evidence, which Sheppard called “not substantial but circumstantial” and “childish”. Jane’s former husband Stephen maintained that she was a possessive lover but always calm and couldn’t commit such a crime. The media speculated a possible affair between Jane and William but made her a ‘victim’ again as she was seeking love as Stephen was so busy with his business that they called him a “bird” flying in an aero plane for more than half of the year.

                     The forensics couldn’t find any prints of Jane on the murder weapon, which the media hailed as “innocence” for a woman who was “corrupted” by a fast growing city. The jury verdict came a week after, acquitting Jane of all charges saying “The Jury is disinclined to believe, like the common people, that an attractive woman like Jane could be a stone cold murderer. Jane was found in her house and not at the crime scene and was drunk so she would have been unable to commit murder and plot an escape in that state of mind.” Robert challenged the decision but was warned as the decision was final and he couldn’t explain how Jane reached her home after the murder and why there were no eye witnesses of Jane’s presence at the crime scene. The media rambled on the jury’s decision about how beautiful woman can’t be murderers but in effect praised that ‘justice prevailed’ as Jane was now a free woman.

                  Robert had a fallout with Sheppard outside court which the media called ‘none less than a drama film’ as he accused Sheppard of terrorizing possible victim’s family or bribing them.  Sheppard told that he would file a defamation case against Robert as Jane was ‘innocent as he is, until proven guilty.’ Much to Sheppard’s dismay, Jane addressed the media while coming out of court saying: “I am not guilty; Gin and guns—either one is bad enough, but together they get you in a dickens of a mess, don't they?". Robert decided to take a break from his career as he still believed that Jane had murdered William and the money Stephen provided and a master mind like Sheppard had helped her escape conviction. Robert had agreed to pen his thoughts (after 3 years) in a book which Sheppard (now running Sheppard’s and Garrisons LLP law firm) has challenged he won’t be able to publish until his law firm reviews and approves it as it possibly ‘tarnishes’ his clients or a jury decision. It remains a mystery though, how William was killed and by who, as long as the statue of justice is blindfolded.