Roommates had left Chennai to Trivandrum for the Christmas holidays. Not having much to do and having no one for a company that day, I headed for the beach – where my roommates and I often freaked out during the weekends.
Location – Besant Nagar beach, Chennai. Date - 25 th Dec. 2004.
Scene 1: It was a pleasant Saturday evening. I was sitting on the lovely beach sands basking by the warmth of the setting sun. The waves were dancing towards me as though to tell me an important message. Seconds later they were receding as if it was not meant for me. I was enjoying the taste of the Lays chips I bought at the Food World on my walk from the bus stand, as much as I was enjoying my solitude.
Scene 2: A family of three – father, mother and their son, aged around 5-6. They strolled past by me towards the much inviting waters of the beach. The young boy’s joy knew no bounds as he approached closer to those enthusiastic waters. I was able to put in myself in his tiny cute shoes – the younger days when I used to go to the Kovalam and Shangumugham beaches with my parents.
Scene 3: Just as I was getting myself involved in memories, I felt the touch of a soft hand on me. I looked over my shoulders to see a young girl, hardly 5 years of age, offering a packet of groundnuts, which she was selling for her living. I brushed aside her hand and said “vendam ma” (meaning – not needed). She tried to somehow coerce me into buying, but I was stern and harsh on her that she quietly moved away.
Scene 4: I tuned to my right side to get my eyes focused on the young boy and his family who had just strolled past me. My eyeballs were fast rolling within the limitations of my eyes and eyesight to get a glimpse of his playful enthusiasm. I finally located him amidst a group of people very close to the beach waters. He was safely standing between his parents, both hands raised above his shoulders to hold on to his parents’ hand, and enjoying the gentle waves touch his tender legs. I was cherishing his every actions.. dancing, jumping, trying to run back as the waves were approaching him.. he was really enjoying his game with the waves!!
Scene 5: Somewhere from within me I felt a sharp pain. It was certainly not a physical one.. a sort of feeling far from what I was enjoying till then. It was a totally involuntary action that I was trying to locate the young girl, the girl who was trying to make her living selling groundnuts at the beach. I got up all of a sudden and did a comprehensive search for this girl, but to vain. I put my hands into the Lays packet, took out the one last piece, put it in my mouth, munched, crushed the packet down, and slowly started to stroll on the beach sands.
Scene 6: I was again into searching for the smart little boy. Was it some sort of vacillation that I was undergoing – searching for the small boy on one side, and then for the little girl? I never had answers for such questions… I went on… This little boy was pulling up his socks to make his way back with his parents. The sun had already set a few minutes back, and darkness was just taking its grip over our part of the world. His face was a direct reflection of the darkness. I bet he’d have wanted to play there more. But still seemed content. They slowly ambled their way back to their car, which was parked quite far from the nearby roads.
Scene 7: I was getting a little hungry, and now that my roommates weren’t there for the dinner that night, I decided to have something form the nearby Dhaba before I got back to my room. Few steps from where I was, I could see a faint figure of that poor young girl handing over the money she had made through that evening to an elderly woman – her mother perhaps. I realized the contrasting levels of life that the world had to offer – a happy family on one hand and a poor soul struggling to make a living, for herself and for that elderly lady out there. This little girl was probably spending all her life on the beach striving for a life; perhaps trying to satiate herselves with whatever little she and her mother could earn. A decent life was something that they could only see through the people, who came over to the beach to spend a few extra hours, but always a distant dream for these poor souls. I walked on with a heavy heart…
Scene 8: The next day morning I was scanning through television channels only to hear that something called Tsunami had washed off many a people on the beaches and neighboring shores that morning. My thoughts were quickly filled with the young girl I saw at the beach last evening. Was she too washed off? I was filled with prayers for her safety.
I felt that I should have bought those groundnuts she was selling the last day; had she been washed off too in the morning, she’d have at least had a few extra pennies to satiate her last supper…
Scene 2: A family of three – father, mother and their son, aged around 5-6. They strolled past by me towards the much inviting waters of the beach. The young boy’s joy knew no bounds as he approached closer to those enthusiastic waters. I was able to put in myself in his tiny cute shoes – the younger days when I used to go to the Kovalam and Shangumugham beaches with my parents.
Scene 3: Just as I was getting myself involved in memories, I felt the touch of a soft hand on me. I looked over my shoulders to see a young girl, hardly 5 years of age, offering a packet of groundnuts, which she was selling for her living. I brushed aside her hand and said “vendam ma” (meaning – not needed). She tried to somehow coerce me into buying, but I was stern and harsh on her that she quietly moved away.
Scene 4: I tuned to my right side to get my eyes focused on the young boy and his family who had just strolled past me. My eyeballs were fast rolling within the limitations of my eyes and eyesight to get a glimpse of his playful enthusiasm. I finally located him amidst a group of people very close to the beach waters. He was safely standing between his parents, both hands raised above his shoulders to hold on to his parents’ hand, and enjoying the gentle waves touch his tender legs. I was cherishing his every actions.. dancing, jumping, trying to run back as the waves were approaching him.. he was really enjoying his game with the waves!!
Scene 5: Somewhere from within me I felt a sharp pain. It was certainly not a physical one.. a sort of feeling far from what I was enjoying till then. It was a totally involuntary action that I was trying to locate the young girl, the girl who was trying to make her living selling groundnuts at the beach. I got up all of a sudden and did a comprehensive search for this girl, but to vain. I put my hands into the Lays packet, took out the one last piece, put it in my mouth, munched, crushed the packet down, and slowly started to stroll on the beach sands.
Scene 6: I was again into searching for the smart little boy. Was it some sort of vacillation that I was undergoing – searching for the small boy on one side, and then for the little girl? I never had answers for such questions… I went on… This little boy was pulling up his socks to make his way back with his parents. The sun had already set a few minutes back, and darkness was just taking its grip over our part of the world. His face was a direct reflection of the darkness. I bet he’d have wanted to play there more. But still seemed content. They slowly ambled their way back to their car, which was parked quite far from the nearby roads.
Scene 7: I was getting a little hungry, and now that my roommates weren’t there for the dinner that night, I decided to have something form the nearby Dhaba before I got back to my room. Few steps from where I was, I could see a faint figure of that poor young girl handing over the money she had made through that evening to an elderly woman – her mother perhaps. I realized the contrasting levels of life that the world had to offer – a happy family on one hand and a poor soul struggling to make a living, for herself and for that elderly lady out there. This little girl was probably spending all her life on the beach striving for a life; perhaps trying to satiate herselves with whatever little she and her mother could earn. A decent life was something that they could only see through the people, who came over to the beach to spend a few extra hours, but always a distant dream for these poor souls. I walked on with a heavy heart…
Scene 8: The next day morning I was scanning through television channels only to hear that something called Tsunami had washed off many a people on the beaches and neighboring shores that morning. My thoughts were quickly filled with the young girl I saw at the beach last evening. Was she too washed off? I was filled with prayers for her safety.
I felt that I should have bought those groundnuts she was selling the last day; had she been washed off too in the morning, she’d have at least had a few extra pennies to satiate her last supper…
5 comments:
man u have a great narrative skill..and nice to see mates blogging...welcome!!
Whoa....that was written to the tee.
THat must be haunting you for life..the ground-nut thing as well as the fact that you were there on the Eve of the Tsunami!!
@ mathew - just started blogging.. time pass!! thanks for the warm welcome mate.. :-)
@ Mayth - yup, kind of haunting... some ocassions and some scenes remain tagged for life...
nee enney senti aakum ethu vayipichu.. Njehiiii :-(
@ Abhy - hey hey.. no crying no crying!!!
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