Antha.... (The end)

 It w

Carry On Tuesday # 126

Catch-22 by Joseph Heller is considered to be one of the greatest novels of modern times. The opening words are simple, an expression we use time and time again!

It was love at first sight

Use part or all of the prompt at the beginning or within your poem or story. Please leave your name and url with Mister Linky. A commentas love at first sight
 Inertia was catching up with Adya. A loud laughter explode from what seemed to be lovers transported her back to the world of 'NOW'. Adya wondered at her recent plight. The strange connection with Siddhartha and her memories flooding back seemed like a volcano exploding. Also Adi's call which seemed like an interruption rather than a pleasure caused Adya to redefine her relationships. How much the past was eating her up...

16/01/06

It was love at first sight. And now it's been a year since a new meaning came into my life. Adi with all his gentleness and love has completely won me over. I see life with a new pair of rose colored glasses. The shades around me are so soothing and life seems relaxing. Something of a holiday trip...

I am looking forward to spend the day, the whole day with him. I can buy a small cake, just for us and a few candles. It will be a surprise...

The whole day, Adya spent in planning about the date. She took care not to reveal any of the surprise details. It was eight PM and Adi hadn't turned up yet. Restlessness began to grip Adya's state of mind. And before she could control her mind she realized it was over... Something went terribly wrong that day. It was a fight that never ended.    

Discontent filled Adya's heart. Life seemed unfair. Taking away slowly and cunningly that which was gifted. It taught her the lesson of detachment. Tears formed in those large eyes as she bent over to look at her  reflection in the lake. Her reflection seemed to smile and along with the breeze she heard a soft cry 'what are you running away from?'. The voice resounded in her ears forever. She felt her feet firmly rooted to the ground. When she tried to shout, her voice refused her order. Fear began to grip her mind instantly. She turned to look in the direction of the voice and saw a boatman in the lake. Within seconds he disappeared and Adya felt a new hope within...  

Now, as Adya looked at the lake and thought about the reflections, she remained calm... She began to observe the flowing water. Blue, clear and so relaxing. Her mind was clear of clutter. The edges of the lake shone brightly, looked almost golden. As the sky was turning into a bright red hue, the color of water changed from blue to a orange color. It seemed to Adya that the lake was much calmer and the splashing of water against the walls kind of made a different sound. Gentle. Peace and serenity took over the whole place. The trees danced to the tunes of the evening breeze and called upon Adya to join them.

Adya decided to let go off the past... Forget the disappointments. Let go off twists with fate and embrace a new way of life. And then came along 'Siddhartha'.... a new hope in life... She closed her eyes and listened to the lake. It was whispering to her in a language she hardly understood. A cloud of peace encompassed her and lifted her to an unknown level where words lost their meanings, languages vanished into thin air.      

A dream that wasn't....

Those were the days my friend

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She snapped the phone off after the call, after all she came here to fight her confusions. Adya's feet slowly moved along the touch me not plant. The leaves snapped close in a sort of descending fashion.Her eyes followed the pattern of the 'touch me not' leaves. Magical! She closed her eyes and followed her thoughts. Various images passed through her mind, many faces crossed her path from past and present.  It lingered for a while on her father. Dr.Rao was a popular practioner. Patients loved him, wife was devoted and his children adored him. How perfect life was! like pages from a fairy tale book. And suddenly....

09/02/07

My hands were sweating like hell. I wiped them constantly. This cannot be happening to me. This is all a dream. I will wake up and shoo it away. Persons dressed in green surgical gowns walked constantly in and out of the operation theaters. Dad will be fine. Everything is going to be fine. The smell of the whole place was yuck! What is the smell...blood perhaps! I need to wake up from this nightmare. Soon. But it doesn't end....I can still see mom in a state of shock. She doesn't respond to anything. Anahita is sobbing... And me?  I am dreaming. All this is a dream. I will wake up before I know... Dad will be fine.. 

 

A kid threw a pebble into the lake and the sound of pebble hitting the surface woke Adya from her past. She straightened up and wiped a forming tear from her eyes and looked at the ripples made by successive pebbles. So beautiful... 

04/05/90

Today I  bought a bicycle. But I don't know how to ride one. Dad said he will teach me how to... We went to a park I sat on the cycle. Dad was holding it from behind. HE promised no to let go off the cycle. But he did let go very quickly... 'Appa' I shouted hitting the ground. I will never believe Dad again....

Life was never the same again for Adya. The loss of her father created a big void in her life. Never to be filled  again. She looked at the lake again. The reflection of the clear blue sky seemed like a blanket over the water. She wondered about the boatman Vasudeva in 'Siddhartha' who transformed Siddhartha.... She secretly prayed for a ferryman in her life .....

Ghost from past...

This week's words: 

Dull; adjective: Lacking interest or excitement; lacking brightness, vividness, or sheen; (of a person) slow to understand; stupid; verb: Make or become dull or less intense.

Race; noun: A competition between runners, horses, vehicles, boats, etc., to see which is the fastest in covering a set course; each of the major divisions of humankind, having distinct physical characteristics; verb: Compete with another or others to see who is fastest at covering a set course or achieving an objective; move or progress swiftly or at full speed.

Yawn; verb: involuntarily open one's mouth wide and inhale deeply due to tiredness or boredom; noun: A reflex act of opening one's mouth wide and inhaling deeply due to tiredness or boredom.

A white pebble stuck to her heel and made walking quiet difficult. Adya almost hopped to a tree and managed to get rid of the pebble with a few twigs. She realized something hard over her back, she had been resting over a board. It read 'Azadirachata indica' and within brackets 'neem tree'. A few drops of water fell over her face and rested lightly over her forehead. It gave a chilly feeling and Adya gladly welcomed nature to take over her.... The dullness of the day seemed to disappear.

There are few people who are like ghosts from your past... always hanging around. They are always there, but never really 'there'. When you close your eyes and think about them, distance disappears, problems dissolve and time stops ticking. You open your eyes convincing yourself, that they were always there. Adya's cell rang... She wondered before answering the call how difficult it is to 'remove' people from one's life.  'Hey, you busy?' a sweet voice asked almost apologetically. 'I am not...tell me' she replied inspite of herself. And that one minute took her mind off Siddhartha.She wasn't even aware how happy the call made her feel. Escaping the maze, though only for a few minutes became possible. Her mind raced through cherished memories and lingered over a while about how special he made her feel...

'Do you happen to know a good dermatologist? Someone from your college. I need to see one...' Aditya's voice fell like music over her ears. Her mind raced to the different faculties list and searched desperately for the right person. 'Yes, Adi... We can meet our Dermat prof. No probs.. but what's wrong?' They were lost in conversation over symptoms of skin diseases which were Greek and latin to Adi and bread and butter to Adya.... At the other end of the line she heard him yawn and wondered if he had a sleepless night, probably thinking about Adya... But she dare not ask. Not now...

The lake smiled approvingly, spreading it's waves in all directions. They rushed along the green carpet splashing against each other.......




   

The first...

Drag; verb: Pull (something or someone) along forcefully, roughly or with difficulty; take (someone) to or from a place or event despite their reluctance; noun: the action of pulling something forcefully or with difficulty; act of inhaling smoke; clothing more conventionally worn by the opposite sex.

Mumble; verb: Say something indistinctly and quietly, making it difficult for others to hear; noun: A quiet and indistinct utterance.

Penetrate; verb: Succeed in forcing a way in or through (a thing); infiltrate an enemy or group to spy on it; (of a man) insert the penis into the vagina or anus (of a sexual partner).


The words came back to her, time and again throughout the day. It seemed like a distant call from a beloved and at times the intensity magnified a hundred times roaring. Blood penetrating through Adya's veins boiled and at times froze. She felt her feet seemed to drag her in opposite directions and her thoughts were filled with the 'gray haired boatman'. The lecture on anatomy seemed like a background playing faraway. Adya's mind seemed to refuse the reality that lay ahead and further dissolve in a world apart. She felt at once disconnected and torn from the present world. Her eyes fell once again on the cover page of Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha. For a minute the whole world seemed to liquefy into silence. She covered the book with few sheets that lay ahead and continued to pretend as if taking notes. Sitting in last benches are useful for introspection. Adya's eyes searched for Nikhil who passed her the book yesterday. He seemed normal, through the thick rimmed glasses he winked at her. 'My God! He is normal. Why is this happening to me?' she asked herself, slowly wiping her brow where beads of perspiration formed. 'Breath... take deep breaths. Calm yourself. It's only a book' an inner voice helped. She closed her eyes, emptied her mind of Siddhartha and took deep breaths. 'Fool, what are you trying to run away from?' another voice mocked at her. And then she started to breath fire again. At that moment all she wanted to do was run away from the lecture hall. Her feet seemed  involuntary... and jumped. The whole class looked at her, 'Adya? any trouble there?' Dr.Varnekar's astounded voice succeeded waking up a few sleepy heads and she had the attention of the whole class... Embarrassingly she mumbled 'My head is reeling mam and I am hearing voices.' Dr.Varnekar's facial expression changed drastically from that of anger to sympathy. 'Oh! Geetha please escort her to the medicine OPD (Out Patient Department)'. Adya excused herself for the day and went away from the large brown building.

It was relaxing to be out in the fresh air. Adya caught a bus to her favorite spot in Bangalore city, the lal bagh lake. En route she forced her mind to concentrate on the trees and greenery on that cloudy august afternoon. She offered her face to the chilling winds and let it play with her unruly hair. She was feeling better, the chaotic day started to appear relaxing atleast temporarily. The majestic vidhana soudha stood, on the right with lush green lawns thronged by tourists. Looking at the building always filled Adya's heart with pride and so it did today. She quickly turned to look at the red high court building with hundreds of pigeons over the lawns. The pattern of their flight filled her with excitement of a child. Nature can be appreciated even in cities, it depends on the eyes of the beholder she told herself. As a loner, Adya got used to being nature's friend rather than a people's person.

As the west gate of lalbagh approached closer, Adya realized that she was in a lover's paradise. She wondered at her strange plight and let a smile pass through her lips. 'Let's see what the lake has in store for me today...' she told herself as she bought a ticket and brushed against the rotating gate.

TO BE CONTINUED