Dilemma

This is a story based on very real incidents that were so interesting and intimidating.   .....               Neha are you ready? This was a call from her mother who was busy packing their lunch boxes. Both of them were working in one of the reputed Schools of Bombay. Neha was a teacher for primary classes while her mother was into higher classes. Both of them were dedicated and were praised for their excellent teaching.  Yes mom let us go, said Neha. They were on time to take the bus to the School. Once there they moved to the assembly hall and later got to the classes and started their work as usual. Everything is normal and as usual. The next week was going to be hectic with the approaching midterm exams. Neha had to start the revision work for the sake of the exam. She had prepared worksheets covering all the required topics . This would help the students to do well in their exams. So far okay. Among the students, she observed that one of the students was not completing his revision work on time nor was attentive in the classroom. She asked the student to come to her with his diary so that a note could be written to his parents about the same. Most of the time it was only the student's mother who would attend the Parent-teacher meeting and the father was never seen so far in these meetings. This time she wanted to meet his father The student's surname was Patel. But what made Neha squirm a bit was the Name Jigar Patel that was the name of the Student's father. This name was a bit intriguing to Neha. The reason was something very personal and some years back a name that seemed to be very nice on her ears and heart. But it was a long long time back when Neha was a teenager. Ok, she tried to brush this name away from her heart and mind. But, it seems to recur again and again in her mind.

Was it OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder)? No folks it was a chapter from her teenage years. As a young girl in her teens who was so active and lively. She looked so beautiful and attractive too. Obviously, she used to be a cynosure to many eyes err, young guys who were overwhelmed by her presence that too in her immediate neighbourhood. As time went by she got attracted to one young guy named Jigar.He never cared about anyone except for his studies and sports This is what made Neha notice his presence even more in particular. She used to try all means to get noticed by Jigar but in vain. This saga continued for a very very long time. Now Neha was no longer in their teens she was in college and still had no response from Jigar to her presence of any kind. Neha had given up on this matter, continued her studies, secured a good job and was marriage ready like any girl of her age. Her parents fixed her match with a brilliant, young, well-placed person. Neha had gotten over her liking about Jigar and was okay with her parent's decision. She knew they would want the best for their daughter and was pleased to please them. Now everything was fixed and the wedding cards printed too.

As she got distributing the wedding cards among her friends and pals in the neighbourhood she had a shock of her life learning from one of Jigar's engineering classmates that he was in love with Neha but never gathered the courage to express it to her fearing that he may be rejected because of the class differences. He belonged to a middle-class family while Neha was better off financially. He was just waiting to complete his education and propose to her after securing a decent job. But, the entire scenario changed and now Neha was to be married off to someone else. This was a big blow to her emotionally but since there was no other option at that juncture she decided what was fixed was okay and she got married to the groom of her parent's choice and was happy with her life. Now let us come to the present situation. Mr Jigar Patel, the parent of the troublesome student would be coming to meet Neha the teacher. What if he would turn out to be the same Jigar whom she loved as a teenager? How would she react to his presence after these many years,? Would he respect her for her decision or otherwise etc. These many ideas were reeling in her mind putting her into a dilemma. Now readers wait for the next write up that would fetch answers to all these questions. Meanwhile, keep guessing what might have transpired after Neha meets Mr Jigar the parent of her student.