Life Of Harris

Once there lived a man named Harris in a village. He is so hardworking and takes good care of his daughter Jenny. Harris's wife passed away a few years back. They were living peacefully with her memories. On her demise, Jenny and her father visit an orphanage and distribute eatables and clothes as per her last wish. On that day, while going home, they saw an old lady sitting beside a garbage bin, in a very bad situation. Harris noticed her and increased the speed of his car. But Jenny touched him with her hand and said, "Don't drive fast, Daddy, Can't you see the old lady there?"

Harris replied, "No, dear! I have an important work." Jenny asked, " Please drive back, Daddy, I want to talk to her." Harris rejected first, but later, he couldn't bear her pleasing face and started driving back. She gets off the car and went to the old lady and touched her with love and care. The old lady was not in a good mental condition, she pushed her and trembled in fear. Harris was observing the behavior of the old lady and standing still near his car.

Jenny felt bad that she didn't understand why the lady was behaving in this manner. She tried reaching her one more time, but this time she didn’t touch her, she went close to her and offered some cookies from her bag. Because of the hunger, the old lady took all the cookies at once and started making her mouth full. Jenny had tears in her eyes when she saw the lady's condition. She looked at her father and shredded. Once the old lady finished eating cookies, she made a gesture of thanking Jenny.

Jenny felt happy inside, got up, and started walking towards their car. But once, she stopped in the middle, looked back at the old lady, and felt an emotional bond lying between them. She couldn't leave her in this situation. So, she went near her Harris and asked, "Daddy, I want to ask you one favor. Can I?" Harris already had an idea of what Jenny was going to ask and replied, "Yes, dear. Don't hesitate to ask." Jenny asked her father about carrying the old lady to their home.

Harris was not ready but respected her decision. Jenny asked her father to carry her to their car as the old lady was unable to walk. They all drove towards their home after giving her a comfortable place to sit in their car. The old lady was looking surprisingly at their home as if she belonged to that place, but she didn't have clarity in her memory. Jenny borrowed a wheelchair from their neighbors for the old lady to drive her inside.

Harris looks disturbed from the moment he saw the lady. But Jenny didn't notice his feelings. A maid came into the living room and was shocked by looking at the old lady. She asked the maid to arrange a room for the lady and gave instructions to take complete care of her. Later, Harris went to his room and slammed the door in distress. Jenny heard the door sound and started running towards his room. But the maid held her hand and pulled back as if she wanted to tell something.

"Please stop", she said in a concerned voice and asked, "Don't disturb your father for some time." Jenny was worried about something happening around her. She was unaware of his father's feelings. She stepped back as if she wanted to give him some space. Then the maid left by pulling the wheelchair to the guestroom. Jenny was totally confused about the situation and sat on a couch. Then, she got a call from her Aunt Emily. She was not in the mood to talk to her, but the maid picked up the call and said, "Madam Emily, Jenny, and her father were tired and taking rest. I will inform you once they are up. Thank you."

Jenny looked at the maid in a thankful gesture. When the maid was about to leave, Jenny stopped her and asked her to sit beside her. The maid refused to sit with her. When Jenny pleased her, she sat next to her. Jenny asked, "I know you have been working here for many years. You were there all the time for me, and took good care of me, my father, and our house. But I never saw my father like this before. Is there anything that I have to know about?"

"The time has come, Dear, now you are a grownup girl and understand the situation. Yes, I will reveal everything that has happened in the past. After that, you may change your perception." She began telling the past incidents, "Harris was a fantastic guy. He was loved by everyone in his family. For higher studies, he left this place and went to a city. There he met a girl named, Elena, and they liked each other. Elena was so afraid of her mother. Her father passed away when she was fifteen years old. Her mother was so protective of her as she was the only child in the family. They were well-settled with so many businesses around the world.

One day, Harris tried to talk to her family about their love, but they rejected and disrespected him in front of everyone. Elena couldn't bear this, she left her mother and her entire property and eloped with him. Harris and Elena were married and led a happy life. But her mother tried to bring her back several times. In this process, she lost her interest in running her businesses as she became alone. She wanted to take an act of revenge on Harris, as she thought he was the one behind all these disturbances.

One day when the couple were coming out of their house, this lady wanted to hit your father with her car. Accidentally, she drove towards her daughter Elena. That incident shocked her severely and she went into Dementia. Her servants took care of her earlier, later she was deceived and dragged to the roads. Her entire property was sealed and undertaken by the government. After so many years, again she was found here in this village." Jenny was full of agony, she hugged her and started crying loudly. "Is she the one responsible for the death of my mother? " she enquired. The maid nodded her head and Jenny felt regret for her stupid decision.

"You were only three years old. Your mother's death created an air of melancholy around your father. I was appointed as a maid when Elena was pregnant. She was such a sweet and loving woman who constantly called me 'sister.' After the death of Elena, I was there for you to take care of, but no one was there to share your father's pain. He was unable to stay in the place where your mother left her memories. So, he came back to this village along with us.", she said and ended the story.

Jenny had a lot on her mind, she was feeling bad about her father and went towards his room. She knocked on the door, and her father said, "I'm busy with some work, can you please visit me after some time? Dear." She understood the intensity of the pain that she had given to him. She went to her room and started thinking about how to solve this problem. She opened her laptop and searched for the best Orphanages in their surroundings.

Jenny was furious towards the Old lady. She wants to send her out of their house as early as possible. After some time, her father came out of his room and called her for dinner. As soon as she heard her father's voice, she rushed into the dining hall. The maid served food for both of them. It was a very silent dinner for both of them. She couldn't dare to utter a single word to her father. Harris was so silent and finished his dinner and went away without looking at her.

 

The day was ended. The next morning, her father left for work before Jenny woke up. Jenny understood that her father was angry with her. After breakfast, she called a friend and explained everything to her. They both went to an Orphanage and made all the arrangements for the old lady. While they are reaching home, they get a call from the maid. The maid was talking with anxiety and fear. She said, " Where are you, Jenny? Please come home. Your grandmother just fell and had seizures."

 

Jenny cut the call and reached home. Meanwhile, the maid called an Ambulance. A doctor who came in the ambulance was checking the old lady. Jenny approached the doctor and enquired, "How is her condition now? when will she be conscious?" The doctor asked Jenny to wait for some time. Later, she came out and asked Jenny to take good care of her as she was suffering from Dementia. The old lady needs proper care because no surgery can treat her condition as she was in her last stage.

 

After understanding her condition, Jenny stepped back from sending her to the Orphanage. She felt pity for her and started brainstorming other options. Because she didn't want to keep the old lady in their house. She started thinking of other options. The maid understood her situation and suggested, "Just stop thinking. As the old lady didn't remember anything about us, there was no need to worry much. Please try to talk to your father and discuss his problem."

 

Jenny had no other options other than keeping her home as a guest. She waited for her father at the dining table so that she could discuss everything that had happened. But she fell asleep at the dinner table. It was 4 a.m., she woke up and saw the clock. She rushed to her father's room and observed that he was sleeping. In despair, she came to her room and understood that her father was not at all ready to communicate with her anymore.

 

She waited till morning sitting outside so that she could catch her father. After some time, Harris was ready to work and observed Jenny sitting near the door. He felt bad so he went near her and sat beside her. He asked Jenny, "What happened, Dear?" Jenny in a low voice and teary eyes looked at her father and said, "Sorry Daddy, I made a big mistake. I didn't want to hurt you. From the moment I learned about her, I felt ashamed of myself and tried different ways to keep her away from us."

 

Harris consoled her and replied, "Whenever I see her, my mind recollects all the bitter memories that make me weak. So, I prefer to stay at work rather than stay at home. I left everything and came back to my hometown because of her. But God still has different plans for me. She came to our place and was spotted by you in a very bad condition. But I don't have any problem with her. I know her condition. Let her stay with us. Don't worry about me. I can overcome my feelings. Stop blaming yourself dear."

 

Jenny felt light-hearted after listening to her father's words. She started taking things under control. While Jenny and Harris were about to leave for their work, a loud voice was heard from the old lady's room. The maid ran towards her room followed by Jenny and Harris. They saw the lady was screaming in pain holding her head tightly. Once the maid gave her medication, she was controlled by herself. All of them helped in keeping her to bed and about to leave. Then, the old lady grabbed Harris's hand tightly. Harris stopped and looked back. He felt very uncomfortable and tried to remove her hand. But the lady called him, "Harris, I made a very big mistake. This is the only opportunity given by god to apologize to you. Please sit here and spare me a few minutes."

 

The Old lady tried getting up. But she couldn't. Harris consoled her keeping his hand on her shoulder. The old lady said, "You are a great person. Even though I ruined your life, you sheltered me to stay. Everyone makes mistakes in their life. But only a few people get a chance to apologize for what they did. I'm so thankful to god for sending me here to meet you. I beg you to please send me anywhere. I don't want to ruin your happiness by staying here."

 

Listening to her words, Harris's heart melted like snow and said, "Mom, please stop apologizing. We both went through a lot in our lives. Now stay with us and be a member of our family." The old lady said with tears, "Son, it is a great pleasure to stay with you and my granddaughter. I hope this is the reflection of something good that I did in my past." She hugged both Harris and Jenny with love and affection. And they all lived happily and peacefully.