Down the Memory Lane

Today since morning, your cute face is flashing up in my mind every now and then. Your bright eyes, snub nose, shiny black hair and strong built body (which can be a result of only long regime of exercises) come to my mind inadvertently. Now it is 12 pm and after long twisting and turning exercises I am up again, still remembering you. The wall clock is making “noise”, reminding that it is midnight and high time to go to sleep and in fact, my body too is signaling that it cannot afford to be awake any more. However, I know your memories would keep on haunting me and I will not be able to sleep. So I am just trying to capture the fine moments of our togetherness through words, probably it would help me to sleep…

I do not know why, but today I am missing you deeply since morning. By the time it was evening, so strong was the feeling of missing you that upon my return to home I took tea in the lawn, the place I stopped sitting after you left us. I sat in the same corner; I used to sit with you. The same corner where both of us used to sit after long hours of playful bliss, you chasing me till you got hold of my legs or for that matter Dupatta (a long piece of cloth worn over the upper part of body by girls like scarf) and in return I chasing you and giving you a sensuous hug or a pat on your soft- silky hair.

I just wonder whether you remember that here in the same corner you used to eat biscuits only from my hands when I used to take my tea.

I still remember the day when for the first time you came to stay with us. We all, papa, mumma, sister and I were happy that you would live with us. Your handsome personality was the topic of the day. All through the day whenever four of us managed to chat, we talked only about you. At the breakfast table, over telephone, at the time of dinner and finally before going to bed as to how you sit, look, walk and how cute you are. Mummy prepared a very sumptuous dinner including kheer (a sweet preparation made of milk and rice) as dessert for celebrating your arrival as a new family member into the family. But you were probably feeling very much uncomfortable. Every ten minutes you would get up and go outside at the main door as if trying to find a way to run away from the house.

However, very soon, within 3 – 4 days you were well settled in the family. You would sit comfortably with us during teatime and would play the role of an ‘active’ listener. By now you had become quite assertive in expressing your needs, be it was chicken soup as breakfast or need of switching on the cooler when it was time of your afternoon siesta. In fact, you would show your disapproval or anger by shouting at Mumma and Papa (we both were lucky enough!) if you did not get chicken soup as your breakfast and would not eat anything else except one and only chicken soup.

Soon you became an inseparable part of our lives especially mine. My day started with you and my day ended with you, leaving no spaces for other to be as close as you were. Playing with you, laughing with you, eating with you, watching TV with you with my hands in your hair and your head in my lap and at night sleeping in the same room….

Every moment was fulfilling, every second rewarding.

I can not forget that day, the day, when we had a skirmish. You carelessly slept on my assignment files which were lying open on the bed while I went to prepare tea in the kitchen and you damaged them partially, from the corners.

As soon as I entered the room and saw that you were sleeping carelessly on my files, my anger knew no bounds. I was really angry since I found my hard work getting destroyed and started pushing you away, screaming. You were probably also too tired that day and started frowning upon me and did not buzz a single inch, instead you tore away the cover of the files into 2 – 3 pieces…

Oh! How fiercely we fought, if I try to remember that scene, a fit of laughter dawns upon me. Tears were rolling down my cheeks and I was screaming upon you and you too were looking very angry reclining on the same place as if enjoying my desperate mood. Only mumma’s mediation helped us recover from this unpleasant situation. She scolded both of us and then finally sorted out the matter by assigning work to both of us. The first assignment for both of us was to apologize with each other…

Then came my MBA examinations and you were there to extend your continuous support and encouragement. You would sit with me all through the night, sitting just next to me. Those were wonderful moments when either at midnight or half past midnight we used to drink tea or coffee together, looking at each other lovingly.

Our happy days were passing off when I suddenly fell ill and was hospitalized. Lying on the bed alone I used to miss you a lot. Mumma used to tell me that even you had stopped eating in my absence and when I would phone you from the hospital you would just listen to my voice, not uttering a single word.

And then when I came back from the hospital, you were very happy.

Expressing your joy to every body, singing in your own way…

Few more days passed by happily, you and I, living together – sharing our joys, sorrows, pains – every emotion, you showering your love upon me and I trying to respond in the best possible manner.

But as all happy things in life come to an end sooner as compared to bad things, this phase of happiness too came to an end.

This time you fell ill and any kind of medication did not work. Your vomits and dysentery did not come to an end. I and papa took you to the best doctors in the city, we tried to provide you with best kind of medication and food, as per the instructions of the doctors but you did not recover. Day by day the brightness of your face was lingering. You were getting weaker day by day. Ever time I saw you lying down lifeless I felt as if some one was squeezing my heart.

I even do not remember how many times, I wept in the bathroom and prayed to God for your recovery. One day even in such emotional upsurge I promised to God that I would stop eating non - veg, my favorite food, if you would recover.

But...

That day the weather was very fine, cool breeze was blowing, the whole sky was covered by dark clouds, as if celebrating the arrival of monsoon .The pleasant weather also boosted my hormone levels and cheerfully I returned from my tuitions, thinking that you too would be probably feeling better. Humming a song I entered the home, only to find that you were not there at your usual place.

As I searched for you everywhere in the home, I also peeped into the bathroom and what I saw was like my worse fears coming true, you were lying there, dead.

There was a smile, suffusing calm on your face, as if getting rid of pains forever.

You went away, creating a wide blank in our lives. For many days we all missed you terribly – while going for morning walk, at the breakfast table, upon my return from office, at night while going to sleep, every moment…
Gradually we became accustomed to living without you, though at times we missed you deeply from the deepest core of our hearts.

Today also, I am missing you terribly.

We will never forget you, your cute face, bright eyes, snub nose, shiny hair, alert ears and wagging tail would always be there in our heads and hearts.

We miss you Jojo, I miss you…