A partial view of an exam valuation zone

Drawing a full breath, I acknowledged the unbearable heat of a mid April’s tropical sun and looking at the feebly moving ceiling fans in the valuation hall, I pitied upon the general discomfort of the examiners who were sitting with me in that hall with bundles of answer scripts for valuation. I looked around, stopped my pen and relaxed for a while and started observing and thinking........

Occasional gossiping among examiners was the only form of refreshment amidst the back-paining job of valuation. And sometimes when some benign natured examiner amongst us sponsored refreshments for the unit, either in the form of cool drink or tea or ice-cream, unknowingly dazzling smiles would spread on the faces of all         the examiners.

Apart from gossiping and smiles there are also streaks of seriousness. For example, some examiners will come to the valuation hall with a very serious visage. They will sit glued to their bunch of answer papers constantly without raising their heads even for a second. They will spare no efforts to devour the answer papers greedily like the hungry cows grazing grass. They won’t say ‘hello’ nor discuss politics although the election is at hand.   

And another group of examiners are there, who sometime take rest and sometime run fast. They are of the normal category, analogous to the experienced bikers who move in variable speeds depending on the traffic and condition of road. Also, we come across another type of examiners who are termed as the ‘Loud Speaker’ type of examiners. Such examiners cannot take up paper correction work quietly. They laugh and speak so loudly that the noise level of the hall may rise to 120 decibels as that of a speeding bullet.  

Whatever may we be, we, the examiners, keep the ball rolling and every year lakhs of students appear exams and lakhs of students come out with flying colours. 

A dumb's dreamgirl

FROM THE PEN APN

3 years back in an acquaintance’s mobile I stumbled upon a beautiful photo of a sweet young girl. That photo was saved in the mobile by the name ‘Anuradha’. I had borrowed that mobile from that generous acquaintance just to make one call as I had no signal on my mobile network. After making a call with that phone I had to return the mobile to its owner but by that time both the photo and the name had permeated deep into my mind and heart forever.

The reason was unknown but it was true that seeing that photo, I was magically transported to a world of enchanting beauty and of immense love. The suppressed smile and the prominent eyes of that girl reflected a strange light and joy of innocence. Her cascading hair and thick beautiful lips struck a chord in my heart. For a moment I was overwhelmed and was lost in deep appreciation. I became speechless in a gasp of admiration. I could not understand why I got so lost in imagining the beauty of a girl whom I had not even seen in person.

In my mind the angelic figure of that girl always surfaced now and then. But I could never find that girl in real life. The thought of that girl in the photo lingered in my mind.

One day the door bell of my apartment house rang with a short note. I opened the door and I discovered a very beautiful girl standing at the door. But the strange thing was that the girl exactly looked like the girl I had seen in the photo. I could not believe my eyes and my heart beat paced up. I could see the same luscious lips, the same wide sparkling eyes, the same cute nose and the same expression on her face.

She came as a surprise and I stood with my mouth wide open. Her lovely lips moved and she spoke something to me but I could not hear anything because I was lost in a different world. She repeated her question once again, “Sir, I am Anuradha, your new neighbour. Can you tell me at what time the piped water is supplied?” I tried to answer her everything precisely but failed to articulate my thoughts. What I could do is just point my fingers to the water pump section of the apartment. She glanced at the little signboard which was hanging on the water pump room displaying the mechanism to start the water pump. She readily moved to the starter of the water-pump and started it pressing the green button. The water pump roared.

Now she turned back and was about to enter into her room. She was the new tenant of the one-bed-roomed apartment which was exactly opposite to my apartment house. She held the door half-opened and using signs expressed her THANKS to me. Perhaps she thought me deaf and dumb. This time I smiled a little and she smiled most lovingly at me. She gave her best smile to me because she thought words were useless to a deaf person and I smiled because in her smile there was the reflection of pure love to a DEAF & DUMB.............Someone has rightly said LOVE is a language which the deaf can hear and dumb can understand.

I prayed and my world changed.

FROM THE PEN APN

 

I frantically searched for something. But I was unable to understand what I was looking for. Was I looking for some fresh air or for some ennobling news? Was I waiting for the dawn of Satya Yuga? Or I was expecting a magical change that will open up my world to Buddha’s serenity.

Desperately I opened the windows for some fresh air. I opened the TV for an elevating experience. I went through the newspapers for some solace but I was miserably disappointed. What I needed was not found. The falsehood and momentary glitter of the world seemed useless.

Then I threw all my ambitions and goals and I decided to relax. I left what I used to hold with clenched fist. With my empty hands I embraced the sky and looked upward.

Now the earth moved round the sun as before. The stars appeared and the evening descended upon the earth as usual and the moon also smiled as usual. But a heavy weight got removed from my heart. My heart pumped blood to my brain and it beat with the eternal music of the creation.

And like a butterfly I felt when I said, “I am not the creator but I am created by Someone to share the light of a Supreme Being.”

I was relaxed. And I saw the waters of the sea glowing and the life-energy scattering brilliant rays of enlightenment and happiness all around.  

Just I closed my eyes and I prayed and my world changed so.......

ON THE EVE OF 5TH MARRIAGE ANNIVERSARY.....

FROM THE PEN APN

Five years back she did not know me, nor did I. But one day my parents took me to her home. She came nervously and sat before me. She smiled a little and then spoke a little. 

Her smiles and little cute figure melted my heart. So in next two months we moved around the fire-altar and solemnized our marriage. All our family members were happy, relatives were happy. My friends danced and now I continuously dance at the song of that girl (of course ‘that girl’ is now my wife and she has every right to make me so and I do not mind it)

And recently we cut a cake celebrating our 5 years of togetherness. But the first piece of the cake she gave to a 3 year old child and then came my turn. Now I am the second person in her life and that child is the first person. But I and my wife share something common. We both call that child as ‘OUR SON’.

THE TASK OF WRITING ONE PAGE..........From the pen APN

I felt nostalgic when I heard the song. It was the very song which I had listened 13 years back during the Annual function of my college. I was the secretary of students’ union and I had chosen that song to energize the mood of celebration during the function.

Today, by chance, when I stumbled upon that song, in a restaurant, I was silenced. My tea began to become cold as I journeyed into the past. The music played on and refreshed some of my fond memories. With the melody of the song many beautiful creatures who had once occupied my mind and heart became alive. Their vibrant smiles and youthful appeals once again flashed in my memory. I relived the moments when I was a teenager and a college student.

I remembered about Miss Mishra who was the most beautiful girl of my class. But I never talked with her because I never wanted to show my weakness for her. I was respected among my friends for my integrity and I had never let it go. In the last days of our college she had wished me good luck for a good result. But that day also I remained cold. I saw her eyes and they told me that she loved me. In reply I wanted to say her that she was the most beautiful girl I had ever met but I stopped with a short, “Thank You.”. She took her LADYBIRD cycle and slowly disintegrated from college campus and also from my life. UNSPOKEN LOVE NEVER DIES.

With the glide of time I have moved to different spheres. But when I look back to those days, from where I stand now, I feel those times as brilliant as sunshine. INNOCENCE IS PURE JOY.

With some books and notebooks I would climb the upstairs to attend my classes and some of my classmates would come downstairs. In the mid-way a momentary stay, exchange of words, glances or just waving of hands were sufficient to make the day going. FRIENDSHIP REALLY RECHARGES YOU.

In those times colleges were without uniforms and the girls and boys would come in all coloured outfits. So the colleges used to be more colourful then now.  Those days are gone now.......IN THE PLEA OF UNIFORM WE ARE COMPULSORILY MADE COLOUR BLIND.

In those times a college student could easily recognize his/her beloved from half a kilometre by the colour of his/her dress. But now that sense perception is missing. 

I had a good friend. One day he expressed his love to a beautiful girl of my class. The girl’s face turned red. Before the girl could speak anything my friend left the place out of fear. The next day my friend saw that the girl had come wearing the best dress. Seeing my friend, she gave a beautiful smile. In happiness now my friend’s feet did not touch earth. Out of joy and celebration he took me to the nearby restaurant and gave me a marvelous treat. That day I ate ice cream, cakes and chenapoda in the restaurant and my friend had paid the bill.

After six months, I discovered that the girl considered my friend as one among her many college friends and nothing more. By that time my friend had 3 papers back.

I remembered how my seniors used to hang out in a particular place in the upper floor. The place was less crowded and gave a good view of the college. We used to call that place ‘Lovers’ Point’.

 THE TASK OF WRITING ONE PAGE IS OVER AND DEAR READERS DO NOT TAKE THE THINGS AS REAL.