The Distant Strains

How will I forget that music? That nostalgic tone still stirs my heart and kindles my emotions after I saw this beautifully embellished flute in the musical instruments shop. My heart still beats fast when I think about Aarav and his dusty hands holding the quaint flute. Aarav,  who changed my life, who paved my path for wisdom. 

“Can’t you understand, what am I trying to say? Or I think probably you are pretending as that” Jessie snapped at me when I told her that I have decided to quit the job which depressed me every day.

“ I can understand you clearly understand you, Jessie, if I quit my job in this so-called multinational company, then obviously I would run out of money, I have to depend upon my dad until I get another job or set a proper career, but seriously this thought doesn’t haunt me anymore, but you know what? the thought of working here haunts me, it corrupts my peace, this is not my cup of tea, I am not into it, I am not into this lifestyle.” 

Yeah! I was alienating myself from my passion, I wanted to be a writer since my sixth grade, but unfortunately, I ended up as a software engineer, leaving my sixty years old dad at Mussorie, in India, I ended up in Srilanka. But finally, I decided this is not going to be like this hereafter, my life is not going to be like this, running for money, chasing luxurious life, destroying the peace of mind, obviously NO!

“But Maya, how are you going to manage? Becoming a writer or whatever is just your fantasy, not your passion, take care of yourself, be practical, I think you are a bit out of reality”

“I guess, yeah maybe… I am a bit out of reality, but I feel happy about it, reality hurts and the reality of my life hurts me more, I want “escapism” Jessie.”

“hmm.. well, okay. All the best for your future. I will really miss you Maya” Jessie hugged me, I could feel the depth of affection in that tight hug, and waved her goodbye.

The first decision I took in my life with nobody’s advice or suggestion but with my own instinct. It was not really easy to leave a job, though it depress you every day, it gives you a lot of money to live a posh life in Srilanka, I don’t know how my dad is going to react about my decision, he’s a strict army man, I obeyed all the instructions and suggestions he gave about my life and about my career, but unfortunately it didn’t work out. 

He is sixty years old now, living in Mussoorie, a municipality in Uttarakhand, India. The place which inspired me to become a writer, every time when I walked in the roads, I used to admire the hill station which is in the foothills of Garhwal Himalayan range. “Oh Ruskin Bond! One day I will also write stories on Mussoorie’s beauty” I shouted in the admiration inside my heart. Now, the thought of going to Mussoorie again thrilled me. I should go and tell my dad about my decision and after a couple of weeks, I decided to go to Mumbai and pursue my higher studies in creative writing.

I reached Mussoorie, the road with small puddles, kissed my feet, the rain drops on the roads pierced the invisible pores and filled aura in my entire body. The downpour started heavily, I stopped near a tea shop and went inside carrying my luggage. 

“Hey Maya, how are you?” Rajiv uncle greeted me with a smile, when he saw me from his car.

“Hello Uncle, I am great, how are you doing? How is aunty and Radha?” his face sullenly turned quiet melancholic when I mentioned about Radha, Radha is Rajiv uncle’s one and only daughter who is skilful in all fields, she sings, paints and a great kathak dancer and also my schoolmate, we are not close friends but my dad is very close to her family, I really admire her and uncle is very proud about his precious daughter.

“Yeah, she is fine, are you going to your home? Come with me.” He asked me to get inside the car and asked about my job and reason for my sudden arrival, I didn’t open up anything about my resignation from the job, I knew how judgemental he would be if I open up about it, and I am already in dilemma about my future and the bold decision I took.

When we reached our home, I saw my dad reading a newspaper and staring at me from his lens, I understood Jessie would have told everything about my decision to resign the job. He spoke politely with Rajiv uncle and let me inside my room.

I sat quietly on my bed, I was not sure how am I  going to justify my actions, dad came inside after Rajiv uncle’s departure. He didn’t utter anything, simply gazed at me.

“So? Is this your decision? What are you going to do with your life Maya?”

I prepared several answers in my mind to his question, but I couldn’t convey my emotions through the words, something hindered me and there was a lack of confidence. I didn’t utter a word, he stared at me and went outside. I was ashamed of myself, why I wasn’t able to say anything to him? What is really wrong with me? I asked these questions and looked outside the window.

There was a small cottage in the isolated ground behind our home, suddenly, I felt something aesthetic when I heard melodious flute music. I stepped outside my room and took my dad’s car when the car got closer, the music became louder and dense. I came out of my car and saw a man with long white Kurta and white pants playing the flute, totally unaware of the happenings around him.

The sky started drizzling as if blessing him with its downpour, I stood there and closed my eyes, the cool air with his rhythms flowing in the air entered my ear lobes, my body experienced a  thunderous gooseflesh and my soul surrendered inside the small holes in his flute. I tasted the raindrops that fell on my lips and the music went on a high pitch. The goats grazing in the field moved here and there as if nodding to the auspicious musical notes. I forgot myself! I forgot the cruel judgment of this world against me! The passion swelled inside my heart and kindled my emotions. The nerves inside my brain gathered those emotions and knitted the words. The music from the brown flute trailed off and my wavering emotions penetrated inside my soul, I opened my eyes and saw the young man placing his flute on his lap. He didn’t care about my presence.

 I realised how his flute dragged me here in this cottage and looked around, I was shocked when I saw a beautiful young lady coming out of the cottage with two cups of tea. She was dressed in a cotton saree and looked at me with amazement.

“Radha! How are you?...” I shouted in shock. 

“Maya, when you came to Mussoorie? it has been a long time, wow! The last time I saw you, you were here during your semester holidays and after five years you are in Mussoorie” she hugged me and kissed my forehead. “And I heard that you got selected in the campus interview and settled in Srilanka, by the way, Aarav, this is Maya, her father and my family are neighbours and Maya, he is Aarav, my husband, he is a musician, we live here” she chuckled and introduced me to her husband, the young man smiled “ I am so sorry Maya, I didn’t know that you were here”.  

He walked with a stick and I discerned he’s blind and his dewy-eyed face had a propitious smile. Radha dragged me inside the cottage asked about my life and work, we talked for an hour.

“Aarav was a worker in our handloom factory, we both fell in love with each other and I told my dad about our relationship, he saw his blindness as a deformity and refused to give his consent for our marriage, we both are so passionate and confident about our love for each other and I wanted Aarav to achieve something in his life, and we are staying here temporarily and going to Dubai next week, I know how my father detests my marriage… but I am forgetting all my worries in his music, I am sure that he will achieve something great Maya and I will always be his moral support.” Radha told and wiped her tears on her cheeks.

I saw Aarav dusting his old flute with a smile and Radha adoring him. I sat there for a few hours and came to my home.

The music still rested in my ear lobes, the melodious symphony stirred my confidence, I saw my dad sitting in the veranda, I went close to him, he saw me with puzzlement.

“I know how it would have shocked you when you heard about my decision, you might have thought that I went crazy and not confident about my life, and I am a loser in front your friends’ daughters who got settled in the jobs and got married to rich businessmen, but believe me, dad, I can hear an unknown voice inside my heart telling me to go in the path which I desired to venture and the voice asking me to make my dad proud not only with my fake smile and stereotypical lifestyle which is tiring my patience but with my achievement which comes from true passion, like the quiet strains we have in this world which guides human beings, I am sure about my career and I will make my dad proud one day” I knelt in front of his chair and hugged his legs.

When I looked up, I saw his eyes glittering with tears, his voice quivered…

“I am proud of you my child, and I am confident about your decision…” he hugged me and sobbed. The wrinkles in his face touched my cheeks, I heard the rhythms of Aarav’s flute. 

After two weeks, I went to Mumbai University and this is the last year of my studies and we are on a trip to visit an old musical instruments shop in Mumbai to perceive the different musical instruments, I spotted this quaint flute here, and the images of Aarav and his dusty flute pierced my heart, the soulful music made me shed tears unknowingly. The rhythms still stay inside my earlobes! The distant strains which came from the cottage from Aarav’s flute on that day in Mussoorie conspired something to this whole world and whispered the meaning of my life and knitted my emotions through the invisible rhythms. The distant strains still wavering in this air!