Home’s Lamp

Once upon a time, a well-to-do family was residing in a village at the fusion of two rivers for the last more than fifteen generations. There was an epidemic in the second decade of the nineteenth century known as Spanish flu. It could not be told with surety that the chief of the family might be a victim of the epidemic, leaving his two sons and one daughter under the shelter of his younger brothers. It wasn’t women’s dominant period at all. The responsibility of the family was on the shoulder of their uncles. They were not so smart in farming and financial matter. The next chief of the family did memorable marriages of their two sisters and young sons and daughters in the family in succession. Because of this, there was a huge loan from the moneylenders of the neighboring town on the family. since this family had a very good reputation due to financial strength by farming in their area. They had an arm and leg. there was no limit in borrowing the money from the moneylenders. Due to continuous drought years and mismanagement of financial transactions by the new house chief. There was a Huge loan over the entire land. Since they were not able to repay it. These money lenders had taken complete control over land as owners with the existing law in favor of them. Land master was helpless in this matter. Some land was still left in their possession. Left land was again redistributed in all brothers. Fortunately, these two brothers were educated. The elder brother completed his primary education and was doing farming. He educated his younger brother, he passed the school board examination in those days. Both brothers were married and had their families.

The younger brother was not a very skilled farmer. He had often a financial crisis. he had four sons and two daughters. He then decided to migrate from his ancestor land which was his birthplace too. In search of a better lifestyle and education for his kids, he had chosen the nearest town from his native place. He was in a job in the private bank with additional support from his land. His elder brother took the responsibility of farming of entire land. In place of it, he used to provide the annual food grains and fuel wooden sticks for cooking. Both were happy. His elder brother also constructed a house in another town for his children’s education. Both the families were making progress in education to the best of their ability. They were coming out from their ancestor’s traditional business. Elder brother’s family shifted with their mother to a new town. They were two brothers and a sister.

Younger brother made the hay while the sun was shining. He built a home in the town. Some of his old close village friends also came to the town for a better lifestyle. They started their traditional business in the town. They were using the names of their friend for consolidating their business. In this way, many people came to know about this royal family. He had a very good reputation because of his job and as the landlord. His kids were making progress in education. All of them completed their graduation. Out of his four sons and two daughters, three sons and one daughter were employed in government jobs. They get separated with time due to their job. In this way, the joint family becomes a disjoint family. But there was still love and affection within the family members. Everybody respects the elder brother who was in a nationalized bank and was promoted to post manager. Everything was okay in all families.

Grandfather and grand mother, both had very much affection for their first grandson from elder son. He was an Apple of his grandfather’s eye. All the family members were loving that handsome son. He was very tall, with fair color, healthy son in the joint family. Grandfather in his whole life is done only the wonderful job that he had migrated from his birthplace and provided the minimum facilities to his family. The rest of the things were done by the family members themselves. They had chosen their path and made their career individually. This was the set example in the mind of a bank manager. He also jumped on the bandwagon.

In those days, there weren’t very frank and friendly relations between the chief of home and family members. Children couldn’t put and exchange their thoughts, view, and requirement directly with their father. All these communications were done by their mother, uncle who was also afraid of her husband and elder brother. Grandson was also afraid of his father’s nature and behavior. He couldn’t expressed his difficulties to his father. Anyhow he passed the school board examination with fairly good performance. His father was quite happy. Then he appeared for a higher secondary school board examination with a science group. The result was not so satisfactory to continue higher education in engineering or in science. He became very nervous. Later he took admission to poly technique college and chosen the computer branch. He passed the poly technique course in a stipulated period of three years. His father wanted that he should prefer for a job soon. At that time, there was no jobs in the computer branch in the Vidarbha region. All jobs were in the Mumbai-Pune region. He didn’t dare to leave his native district due to his cowardly nature from childhood. There might be some evil impact of angriness, the odd behavior of his father on the emotion of his mother during the growth of the baby in her stomach. That is why he was very shy, timid in his conduct. He then decided to go for graduation in engineering. He went there, completed the first two semesters. But something wrong happened with him in the family or somewhere else. he could not complete his graduation.

His younger brother was also not doing well in education. He was trapped in bad company. His father was also about to retire in the coming years. His sister completed post-graduation in chemistry. She started her coaching class in the same town. Good earning was from this profession to her. She socks away. His father decided on her wedding. They searched for a son-in-law for few years. After few years she gets married to a lecturer in the same town. Both were happy. But grandfather was too much worried about his first loving grandson. He was not doing anything. He was only killing his time in thinking about his worst situation. Later He was directly blaming his parents for his illness condition. He became the bad apple for the entire family.

It was true that his father could not update himself with time. He had not taken any extra labor like other updated parents by leaps and bound. The eldest young son was then just a burden for the family and society. His younger brother gets married. With a few years of dispute between them. His wife got a job in a cooperative bank. Her husband was also doing a job in some private company.

All the grandsons and granddaughters of grandfather were highly educated, They were either doctors, engineers, or officers with handsome incomes. But their loving first smart, handsome grandson was still bachelor and unemployed. It was a great concern for grandfather. He was the only unsuccessful grandson about whom he was very much optimistic. He was expecting some wonderful, extraordinary achievement from him in his life. So he would have brought glory to his family. He would be proud to be known by the name of his grandson. Because he was the home’s lamp as per old thoughts. his light should spread everywhere so that other grandsons and granddaughters search their success path by following him. But it was a very sad thing for him. As home’s lamp was himself in black shadow.