Harmony At Last

“Aunty, our ball flew away all by itself and landed in your garden,” a chirpy voice was calling out, accompanied by some more childish noises and giggles.

 

We had just moved in to the neighborhood and I was busy unpacking, dusting, and arranging the furniture. I stomped out into the balcony, wiping away the copious amounts of sweat that had gathered on my forehead. Yet, one look at the childish face with innocent brown eyes was enough to throw away all preoccupations to the wind. Why, the cheeky smile on his square face looked ever so familiar. I stood transfixed watching as the little boy probed around the garden, squashing a few flowers as he went. I had not yet begun working on the garden anyways.

 

I rambled back in absentmindedly to a bedroom that was in total chaos. The naked cot had clothes strewn all over. I pulled down a few suitcases from the same and sat down in a daze. Forgetting all about the unpacking and arranging, I frantically searched for something in a huge backpack. There it was; the album that held all my dreams and sweet memories. As I leafed through the self-adhesive pages, the faded photo of little baby, Asher in my arms stared back at me; both of us were enveloped in the huge arms of Melvin. The day we knew we were going to have a baby, how both of us had been in the seventh heaven the day he was born, all that came back afresh into my mind. The grandfather clock that Melvin had just fixed on the wall kept ticking away as I gazed into the picture of my dear son, Asher.

 

“Sara, did you find my garden tools?” Melvin’s booming voice shook me out of my dream world. He walked into the room with his long, heavy strides. “What in the world are you doing? Everything is topsy-turvy here and arrey, you sit there as though you’ve all the time in the world!”

 

He then took one look at my weepy face, came, and sat by me, patting the unruly curls behind my ear, fishing out a towel to wipe my tears. “What happened to our promise? You told me you would never go through this album or cry over it again, didn’t you? Then why did you take it up now?” His reproachful voice could not hide the stealing glances he was throwing into the album.

 

“Why deceiving yourself, darling? You too can’t get him out of your mind, I know it. Take a short break, let’s forget all the chaos here for the time being and go through our memories. Your garden and everything else can wait for now.” So saying, I pulled him closer and we began to turn the pages together, ever so slowly. There were pictures of Asher playing with his miniature cars, Melvin getting his son dressed up for a fancy dress, dad and son perched up on a tree, bangles arranged on my nose and ears like rings and Asher grinning away. In another picture Asher was standing proudly with a cricket bat, yet another with the dear little boy with cake all over his face, and then the picture of him playing the guitar his dad had gifted him on his fourteenth birthday. All this and more danced in front of our eager eyes that were searching for more and more and ....

 

“I wish we could go a few years back in time,” Melvin mused, looking into my face. His otherwise laughing brown eyes had a hint of sorrow in them. He then stood up shaking his broad shoulders vigorously, as though to shake off the pall of gloom from our lives.

 

Melvin, a happy-go-lucky person at heart always sees to it that joy envelops the ones close to him. He gave me a shove on the shoulder and said, “Sarah, let’s get going and make this new home our haven. All that is past is past. What do we gain dwelling on it? Try to bring some order in here and we will go out and grab a few morsels for lunch. My friend, Gopi says there is a real good restaurant in town, Mami’s Mess or something like that. Let us go see what they have to offer. Come on, buck up.”

 

In spite of me, I smiled up at him weakly and said in mock anger, “And what are you going to do, already going out gardening? Not giving a hand to your poor wife.”

 

“Okay, baba. You just tell me what you want done and I am at your beck and call.”

 

Things began to move at a quick pace then and soon the place looked like more of a home. There were still things to sort out, which ones were to be stashed away in the attic and all such things. Overall, we heaved a sigh of relief.

 

Bone tired, I sat down on the plush sofa with the chequered cover all over it and looked with satisfaction at the antiques put in place on the mantelpiece. Melvin had chosen this house built by the British, knowing my fondness for such homes. It was very like the one I had lived in when I was a child, with fireplace and all. A slight breeze from the window caused the light green curtains to flutter. The tangy smell of some curry wafted in from the neighbourhood and my stomach began to rumble.

 

We made our way through the tree-lined streets. There were a few people, maybe coming home for lunch or returning. The faces looked friendly and I felt eager to be a part of this sleepy neighborhood. We did not have much trouble finding Mami’s Mess. We had their routine meals and found it tasted good.

 

As we made our way back I said, “You know, darling, this morning a little boy had come into our garden to fetch his ball. His face and his smile, ah! What a mischievous smile it was; made me think of our Asher.”

 

“There you go, back on the same topic. Why spoil this pleasant ambience. You are the one who ended everything.  He pleaded with you to accept his choice, but you didn’t even have a look at his girl.” A cool breeze was blowing into our faces, making our walk pleasant. Melvin was right. There was a positive aura all around. Yet, the demons in my mind kept me away from everything positive. “Why would he do this to us? He was the world to us and we gave him all the love he wanted. Then, why did he go and choose that north Indian girl? Couldn’t he find anyone from our community?”

 

“You must have heard the saying in a regional language not to build dreams based on your children or the flowers of the mango tree.” He then looked at my gloomy face and chuckled. “Now don’t pull that long face of yours. You see, the matters of the heart are hard to understand. Else, why would a smart and handsome man like me fall in love with you?”

 

I could very well see he was trying to make me smile. I played along and pretended to be hurt. “So you think you could have got yourself a Miss India if I hadn’t come in the way. Then go ahead. I’m ready to clear your way even now.”

 

We both looked at each other and burst into laughter. “But still, it’s been eight years since he went away, long eight years. Did he think of his poor mother even once all these years?” Once again I was back where we began.

 

“Let go of all that, darling. I’m there for you, equal to ten sons, am I not?”

 

 

 

We got used to our new territory in a matter of days. And what was there to get used to? Every other day someone or other from the neighborhood would visit, with something homemade or some juicy news to share. Also, it was fun watching the children at play in all their innocence, especially the little boy I had seen on the first day.

 

One evening he came in to fetch his ball and I hurried over to chat with him. He seemed scared that I was going to scold him. “Aunty, no harm meant. We just want our ball back. We won’t stomp down your plants.”

 

“Oh! So you thought I’m angry with you. Come on, tell me your name.” I patted his head gently.

 

“My mom and dad call me Danny. My name is Daniel.”

 

“Will you come in for a minute, Danny? I have some halwa for you.”

 

Danny’s friend was beckoning to him from the gate. Danny perked up his tiny button nose and said, “Smells yummy. But, … will you give some to my two friends too.”

 

“Sure, I have enough for all of you.”

 

“And don’t tell my mamma, okay. She told me not to eat anything from stranger’s homes.”

 

I laughed at his sincere face and asked, “Am I a stranger to you? And what is your mamma’s name.”

 

“It’s Neena.” That name seemed to ring a bell somewhere. Danny squinted at me with those honey-coloured eyes of his. Maybe he decided he could trust me and began to come in. Just then a silvery voice could be heard calling out “Danny, Danny, where are you? I’ve been searching all over for you. It’s time to go to the hospital.”

 

“Oh no! Mamma is here. We’ll come some other day, okay aunty.” He waved and began to scamper away.

 

His mamma, Neena, a lovely lady with deep blue eyes and long hair plaited down to her waist, came up to the picket fence. “Oh! There you are.” Then looking at me, she said hesitantly, “Sorry ma’am. Hope my boy hasn’t been troubling you.”

 

“Not at all,” I smiled. “In fact, simply looking at him play around makes me so happy. Where do you stay?”

 

She pointed to the opposite block and said, “We are on the second floor at the corner of that block.”

 

“Who is at the hospital?” I was curious. By then Melvin had come back from his walk. Did I see a look of familiarity or recognition when he looked at Neena. I must have been mistaken, for he looked questioningly at me.

 

“My husband met with an accident. His friends took him to the RK Hospital downtown. Nothing serious really. His right leg is fractured and he has to stay in there for a couple days more. He has been away only for a few days, but he already misses Danny boy. He said he wants to see him. So I thought I’d take him with me to the hospital today.”

 

I stood looking at the retreating figures before me and blurted out on an impulse, “Darling, shall we go visit that little boy’s dad too?”

 

Melvin looked quizzically at my concerned face. He seemed excited as though he was holding back something from me and dying to blurt it all out. “Then, why wait? We will go just now, so that we can be there when Danny and his mom visits.”

 

“Danny? You know the boy’s name. How’s that?”

 

He just smiled and said, “I asked him, why, can’t I ask him his name? I was so drawn to that little fellow as he skipped about in the playground that I asked for his name.”

 

Soon we were on our way to the RK Hospital. It was a neat, three-storied multispecialty hospital. As we walked in through the gate, I spied Danny and his mom scurrying off into the building. We stood at the reception counter, uncertain as to where we could find the patient. “Hmm, I even forgot to ask for Danny’s dad’s name. Now how do we find him?”

 

Melvin walked up to the counter and seemed to make some enquiries. He soon came back and said, “He is admitted in the ortho ward in the ground floor. Come on, let’s go.”

 

The ortho ward was at the end of the corridor. I spied Neena entering a room and we walked towards it. There were four beds in the ward and Danny was seated at the foot of one of them. The other beds were unoccupied. It was then that I noticed the young man lying there, his right leg held up in a long cylindrical cast. His square face, honey brown eyes, and the turned up button nose, made me cry out. I rushed to his side.

 

“Asher, Asher, my son. What happened to you? You don’t know how I missed you day and night….” Then everything was a blur.

 

When I came to, I was lying in one of the vacant beds, Melvin seated beside me.

 

“But, but, darling, there lies my son. Let me go to him.” I began to scutter down from the cot. Melvin was gazing at me, a huge smile on his face

 

“So you knew everything, didn’t you? Don’t tell me you even knew that Asher lived in the neighbourhood when you bought our house.” One look at his face and I knew he had schemed together with his son.

 

Danny came up and asked, “What happened, Aunty? Why did you swoon all of a sudden?”

 

“Not aunty, my child. I’m your granny. Yes, my dear, you are my own grandchild.” I hugged him close and cried. I looked up at Asher’s face and he was gazing at me, that all too familiar warm smile on his face. Neena was standing beside him, a content smile on her face. I could not hold a grudge against her any longer and slowly walked up to her and gave her a tight hug.

 

ENDS