Family Short Story – Non-living Too Dies Sometimes
Photo credit: AcrylicArtist from morguefile.com
May, 2007
She stood there, in front of the tall apartment, staring at the shining glass windows, the newly painted walls, a whole new beautiful structure, but she didn’t seem happy at all. It’s almost two years she is coming back to the same place. She clutches her bag more tightly, takes a deep breath and controls the tears to accept the present.
April, 2004
The bungalow is full of guests and is echoing laughter and jokes from time to time. She stood there with a smile on her face. She was in her grandparents’ house which she loved and always waited to visit in her summer holidays.
It wasn’t a house but a palace with giant gate and a huge bungalow. She loved it more because of the love she got from her grandparents. She used to get beautiful gifts every time she came and was pampered a lot there. Her grandmother would brush her hair, prepare new dishes for her, tell her stories during bedtime while her grandfather never missed an opportunity to show his love towards her. Her grandfather was very understanding and calm person and she never met anyone like him till now. But some kind of disease attacked him and slowly one by one his organs stopped functioning. From the time the girl could remember he could not speak and make any of the hand or leg movements. But this neither affected his nature nor his unconditional love. The girl while conversing with him by looking into his eyes and the warmth of love that touched her would be enough to understand what he wanted to convey. Although unable to move he would ask the girl to sit on his lap or keep her head and with a lot of effort would keep his hand on her head. Each room of the bungalow had some or the other sweet memory that were kept treasured in her mind.
Today, many guests have arrived here. Just after few days, in May they would be celebrating her grandparents’ 50th marriage anniversary and that too on a hill station. Everyone gathered in the bungalow and was going to leave for the hill station the next day. The girl stood there listening to the talks in the living room. It felt like everything is going to last forever…the smiles…the laughter…everything.
The next day everyone left early morning to Mahabaleshwar, a hill station in Maharashtra. On the anniversary, everything was decorated beautifully and her grandparents’ were made to marry each other again. It was a lot of fun and everyone did enjoy. The weather was cool and pleasant, gardens were covered with lush green grass and multicolored flowers. She walked there playing with a strand of her hair with one hand and lifting her lehanga with the other. She had that long enchanting smile constantly on her face as she watched her grandparents’ remarried.
After the anniversary and wandering the place for next few days everyone went back to their home and she came back to her grandparents’ palace to spend her rest of the vacation. Just a day before leaving she was relaxing by keeping her head on her grandfather’s lap ,she muttered, “Grandpa! I don’t want to leave you and go, I want to stay with you forever…” Her grandfather couldn’t control and tears rolled down his cheek. He kept his hand on her head and cried silently.
September, 2004
She was in the train and was shivering by the things that suddenly took place the past few moments. Her family had been called as her grandfather was serious. She didn’t want to lose him. As they arrived she felt his absence as soon as they entered the bungalow as there were no welcoming eyes filled with love, his wheelchair was empty. But what is written in one’s destiny can never be avoided. She lost her grandfather on her birthday. It was the worst shock she had ever beard in her life. After few days she decided that instead of weeping she would treasure each of his memory and make him live again by remembering him.
May, 2005
Its vacation time and she again arrived her so called palace. She tried her best to resist her tears as much as possible as she missed her grandfather a lot. She went to each room and lived each memory once again. She knew that although her grandfather is not present physically but he exists somewhere and everywhere within the bungalow. She felt him each time and it did bring her enchanting smile back. The bungalow was the only thing that connected her with him. She loved to be there to recall all the memories.
June, 2005
She was running down the stairs, her frock plates followed her gently wiping the side railing. She was in a hurry to reach the living room to confirm what she heard was true or not. She stood behind the door and bit her lip as she heard her uncle say that he sold this bungalow to make an apartment to earn money. She couldn’t believe her ears, she stood there helpless. Just before leaving the bungalow she visited each room, gently touching the walls because she knew this was the last time she was seeing the bungalow. At last she couldn’t control and burst out crying. Her cheeks were still wet when she left.
May, 2007
She stood still clutching her bag more tightly, remembering the bungalow, the eyes filled with love, the memories and everything that she loved. She lost each and everything that she believed to stay forever even her palace. She controlled herself and muttered “Even the non-living things die sometimes and we have to accept it!”
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