Are you going home this weekend?

 

It was this inquiry from my colleague that stirred the thrive to go home on a late Friday

 

night. After a good sleep i woke up to what was going to be one of the most significant

 

days of my life. After all I was secretly cherishing to have one such day. Not that it

 

requires any special skills or essentials but i was not trying to build that 'one such day'

 

yet.

 

It was only 5:45 in the morning and as set earlier with my child hood friend Unni, i went

 

straight to his paddy field. On the way to the field i could see the old oil mill which is still

 

functioning and from where we used to steal coconut oil cakes in our golden days.

 

There stands my once favorite 'Asha hotel'. The hotel stands alike without much change

 

but the mill has undergone major renovation. I met Unni at the field who was already

 

ploughing the land for his red spinach cultivation. He made the much awaited and familiar

 

call..

 

'Aliya..'

 

'Machu..' i responded.

 

After our initial conversation I asked him about me trying to plough the land.

 

'Thaanguvo..?' he smiled back.

 

I carried my so called ploughing which Unni had to re do at several places. We

 

discussed about the climate, the temple, the pond, the GST and what not.. we even

 

ended my arguing on Rahane not getting a fixed spot in the current Indian Cricket team.

 

We took a break. We sat on the banks of a canal where water was kissing our foot. I sat

 

there watching the grass resisting the water from getting pulled off. Unni continued

 

'Parayada...How is you wife..kid ..family all well?'.

 

I was literally counting the moments for Unni to ask this question. I said

 

'All are good. Let it be there. Eda I was not able to come when your mother passed

 

away'.Unni looked at me and said

 

'Ahh..Why telling this now? After all you were there with her on most of the nights at

 

hospital sharing with her our child hood mischievous and memories. Those are enough.

 

She was happy at her last days. She never complained. She just left'.

 

There was a silence and i could only hear the water trembling down through our foot.

 

Unni stood up

 

'Eda let me plough more before the rain gets harder'. We both avoided the glance as we

 

both knew we were hiding our tears

 

The strong bold lady i knew, his mother who single handedly brought Unni and his sister

 

up. The lady who worked the whole day at cashew nut factory and at night cooked

 

delicious fish ,kappa and Kangi. The share of which, i got most of the next day

 

evenings. I had seen her fingers gone black with the cashew stain and i remember

 

holding her stained fingers at hospital few nights. How much days of stain was i holding

 

on those particular nights..?But the lady was never aware of all these external bruises.

 

She used to call me

 

'Thadiya...'

 

The night when me and Unni were caught red hand trying to smoke a cigar ,the way she

 

told us that it is all up to us and do always take care of our health. Ohh memories are a

 

photo flash and i purposefully avoided them...Iam too weak for those memories now.

 

We decided to take bath at the canal and i told Unni spontaneously

 

'Eda i don't have a soap'

 

He just looked at me and laughed

 

'Oru valya Engineer. Poda...Use mine'

 

I remembered...did we ever have separate soaps while we used to bath at this canal.

 

Time has made me idiot and selfish. I took Unni to home. We had breakfast and i told

 

him that i need to visit his sister. On his bike we went to his sister's home.

 

Another lady who makes a mockery of the so called life struggles. When we arrived she

 

was stitching a bundle of cloths and i saw the board... 'Whole sale stitching center

 

Ladies/Gents'. I had a smile on my lips. On seeing us she asked

 

'Enthinada nee ee thaadi valarthunanthu..Entu kola ada ithu praveene. Vaada vaada'

 

Her husband inquired about a mathrbhumi news that reported about a layoff of IT

 

employees. I enveloped a dry smile with a pathetic gesture.

 

His sister loved me and Unni equally and she was always kind at both of us at several

 

occasions She once secretly took us to a temple festival drama that our parents

 

rejected. She drew my 10th and 12th lab records. I remember my teacher saying

 

Praveen has a nice skill to draw. I had never told this to Unni's sister. But today i

 

decided to say..

 

we all busted out in laughter. I remembered how for a ONAM she stitched two similar

 

shirts for me and Unni with a blue flower on the pocket. On the day before her marriage

 

I still remember the words she told to us

 

'Eda makkale. Take care of your health and always do what you like most'

 

I swear i had no clue then what was the meaning of those words. We all had lunch and

 

her elder kid who is a +2 student stepped in from school. With a jinxed face i

 

remembered that i didn't buy anything for the kids. I pinched Unni and said.

 

'Eda kuttikalkku onnum vangiyitilla'

 

'Onnu poda'

 

Yes iam an idiot. Have i ever brought anything to this home and kids. Unni was

 

mimicking my formalities. The elder kid was asking her father about a entrance

 

coaching center and the ways to join. The father replied back to the mother..

 

'Edi appo enganeyanu..Entha cheyyendethu..?'

 

I realized how beautifully she manages her family in midst of all sufferings and how

 

small a weed am i in front of this lady.

 

Evening while taking bath in the panchayat pond me and Unni were engulfed with the

 

memories of our drinks sessions,movies,love,Travel and all those good old era. Unni

 

remarked.

 

'Heard melodies are sweet. But those unheard are sweeter'

 

I came back home and sat with my mother for around 2 hours and we were talking a lot.

 

To my painful surprise i realized i have never talked to her for this long in the past 15

 

years. Our conversations were short and precise only for the mood of situations and

 

needs. I remember that old day when i was some 6 or 7 years old and my mother

 

educated me the importance of vision. She explained me that our eyes takes a photo of

 

whatever we see and stores in our brain..Yes mom my eyes has taken several photos

 

of you bringing me up. Those were in my brain's dark room. It had to wait till this day to

 

get processed into real color photos. My father who usually talked very less to me joined

 

us for the conversation.

 

Painfully rather with a smile i remembered my colleague's words..

 

"Nammude parents nammude mukathe nokkiyittu anu chirikkano karayano ennu

 

theerumanikunanthu"

 

I paid a thousand gratitude to my colleague in my mind.

 

Sunday evening i drove back to Trivandrum and my eyes were taking photos of the

 

fading image of my father and mother through the rear window till i took the final curve.

 

But my eyes didn't stop. It kept on taking the photos of the paddy field...the pond...the

 

mill...the canal...Tears rolled down my cheeks and then I realized how good a soul was

 

my colleague to stir such good things in me. Thank you dear!!!