Dear friends
I am posting my first creation which is a
story. I hope you will like it. Please leave a comment even if you don’t like
it. It is your comments on which I
thrive. I am waiting for your
reactions. So please, please post your
views about the story.
Shailesh felt very depressed
knowing that Smiti had a broken arm which may become a lifelong problem or may
not give her a very happy situation in future. Although the doctor had tried to
comfort him telling that children recover pretty fast negative thoughts kept
nagging him. He also felt very tired after the afternoon’s ordeal of rushing to
the hospital, the doctor’s belittling talk and the sense of deep guilt inside. He
missed Meena terribly and wanted her to be at his side now. He kept on telling himself that had she been there
probably such situation would not arise. It was easier talking to her about the
accident on phone but he did not know how to face her on her return and she
will be here any moment now. He glanced at Smiti sleeping on the couch nearby
with a small chocolate clutched in the left hand and her plastered right arm resting
on her side. Her face was swollen and
cheeks were stained with the marks of tears that had run down her face along
with her shrieks of pain. Except for a
few grimaces that her face made she seemed to have forgotten her grief at the
moment. Shailesh remembered that soon after
her birth she had given him an angelic smile when he had held her in his arms
for the first time. The smile had filled his heart with a strange lightness and he felt as if the whole
world had been illuminated and was glowing with happiness. Many a times while
playing with Smiti he would mimic like joker or walk on his toes like a
kangaroo just to see her laugh. He could die for the smile that would light up
her face on getting a toffee or a small chocolate. He had decided to name her “Smiti” that is
smile in Hindi and Meena had agreed to it very easily. The memory made him smile too and he thanked
god that children are able to forget their grief so fast.
Smiti now aged more than
five was learning to write and would mostly try to doodle everywhere with her
pastel colors. None of the walls were spared by her art and the alphabet of the
English language whichever letter took her fancy. He had admonished her to not
to soil everything that comes into her sight.
Even though it was a Sunday today
Shailesh was very busy in a time bound project and with great effort had
prepared designs which were a result of many months hard work. He was stressed
because the deadline for submission of the designs to his boss for presentation
to the clients was just the next day. While he was engrossed in finalizing a
proposal to accompany the designs were resting beside him on the table. Smiti kept pulling at his trousers to draw his
attention and wanted to say something but he just could not leave the work at
that moment. he was at a very important point of his proposal and he required to concentrate. He had asked her several times not to bother him and go in the
other room to play, but she was adamant. He was already irritated by her disturbing
interruptions. Without looking up he just nodded to something she was mumbling
oblivious to what she said. But she kept urging him to get up and come with her. Then he saw the lids of the red and green permanent markers
lying on the floor and Smiti using the marker pen on the drawings he had kept
aside a few minutes ago. He was highly angered his valuable work was being
spoiled by a kid’s folly. Months of
labour gone in a few minutes. In his rage, he just pulled her arm shouting as to
what she was up to whereas Smiti very proudly tried to display him her
beautiful work catching it in both the hands.
This further enraged shailesh and in a fit of frenzy pulling her arm he
just thrashed her aside. The great thrust made Smiti collide with the wall and
with a big shriek she collapsed. Scenes
of making frantic calls, carrying her in his arms, rushing her to the hospital,
waiting for her to come through in the hospital just flashed through his mind like
a nightmare and he shuddered at the thought that Smiti might lose the arm.
Shailesh stooped to pick up
the permanent marker which would now be useless and replaced its lid. He started collecting the drawings scattered
on the floor and there he saw a little heart drawn which he had taught Smiti to
make into a perfect shape. It danced before his eyes mockingly between the
words “I U PAPA” the heart shape meaning love and the writer was proud to be
able to write PAPA! A word! An
achievement for the little one! Shailesh just sat there on the ground staring
at the words tears streaming down his cheeks feeling devastated.
| Manisha | |
