A SHORT STORY FROM
PAST MEMORIES
March 25,
2011, Friday
I lived in Delhi from April 2008 to September 2011. Robin
was one of my close friends and we spent most of time together those days. One
day he insisted me to go his village with him to attend the Naming Ceremony of
his nephew. We planned the trip together and reached his village, Maduli (15
kilometres ahead from Bhikyasen, Uttarakhand) in the morning of the day 25
March, 2011.
It was a wonderful journey from Delhi to Maduli. It was
situated in hilly areas. As it was starting of summer there was not so cold.
Robin introduced me to his family and locality and then we went to the dark
room where we enjoyed two or three mouthful of red wine beneath a hanging lamp
tied with the ceiling hook. In the courtyard, the naming ceremony of the infant
was going on and I could hear the traditional pahari songs which mostly used to
be sung in Birth Ceremony. Panditji already had announced the boy’s name ‘Divyanshu’
before we attended the ceremony. I congratulated his parents by giving a sagun
envelope for the baby and left to visit the village with Robin.
There I met a new friend named Pankaj who was pursuing his
graduation. He treated me so well. In the evening, returning to home we saw an
old lady asking for food and shelter for that night. She was wearing saree and
might be belong to a good family. All the matter I came to know that she was
mentally disturbed and helpless. I didn’t know where she came from and where
her family lived. I asked Robin and Pankaj to provide her food and shelter.
They agreed. But Robin’s home was much far from there. So we decided to make
her arrangement somewhere else.
Robin knew a man Dr. NPS Panduri who lived just couple steps
down from the road. We took her to his house and fed her well there. Mr.
Panduri lived with his only son in the house of one room and a kitchen. So we
took help of another old lady (Ammaji) who was his neighbour and lived alone in
her double storey wooden house. At first she refused to allow her stay there
but after a long discussion and requests she agreed to give her shelter for
that night. But there was a condition. She wanted one of us also to stay in her
house that night as she was afraid of the mentally disturbed lady.
Pankaj and I decided to stay there but Robin had to leave
for his home as there was a lot of pending work to do after the ceremony.
Ammaji led us to her house and arranged for our stay. The old sick lady had
slept then we went to Mr. Panduri’s house. There we enjoyed music and his
singing. He was a good Harmonium player. We discussed on social issues, studies
and such more topics. Mr. Panduri gave us a motivational speech like every
elder person gives to his younger. It was a fantastic experience of my life to
help that lady and to spend my time with those strange and heartily known
people.
After sometime we went to the bed in Ammaji’s House and
slept well whole night. After having morning tea, the very next day we met Mr.
Panduri again. He took the responsibility to send that lady to her home and
praised us for what we did last night. As I had to leave for Delhi that morning
we said goodbye to both Mr. Panduri and Ammaji and thanked them by touching
their feet (Charan Sparsh).
I never met those people again in my life but I could never
forget them. After all they were my family that night.
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