A Smiling Tear

People pass by with a smile
Seem to mock at me
I smile back and I am crying

Amidst the crowd, cracking jokes
Seem to laugh at me
I laugh with them and I am crying

There is song and frolic
Seem to make fun of me
I sing and I am crying

"Come, join the musical chair"
Seem to challenge me
I hop in and I am crying

Roses all pink with blushes
Seem to taunt me
I blush and I am crying

"Hoopla around" cries the child
Seem to provoke me
I hoopla and I am crying

"All fine dear?" they ask
Seem to scare me
I am fine and I am crying

I smile, I laugh, I sing, I hop, I blush,
Seems I am fine but why am I crying?

I smile, I laugh, I sing, I hop, I blush,
No one can see that I am crying.

PS : This is a work of fiction.

Veracity

"....The most divine thing for a woman is to become a mother. And there is no better boon than giving birth to a girl child"

She ended her speech amidst loud cheers and applause at the Conference on saving the girl child. She was one of the chairperson of the NGO which worked towards protecting the interests of the girl child and their development. They worked in educating rural folks against female infanticide and to nurture importance of the development of the girl child. 

She was very tired after a hectic day hoarded with meetings and conferences. She came to her room, decided to take a nap. She lied down, started feeling her stomach and silently wished for a boy.

Life

He was the luckiest child on earth. His mom and dad looked after him with all the care in the world. He was protected from the harshness of this cruel world by his ever protective parents.


He was very very happy, contended and at peace. He spent most of his time clinging to his mother, safely under her shadows, never venturing away from her sight even for a moment. He thought it was only bliss until one day.

He could never forget that unfortunate day in his life when he had to be separated from his parents and siblings. He was angry. He asked "Why me?" But he had no answer. He was jealous of his sibling who would remain with his parents while he would never ever see them again. His parents convinced that it was for his good. The person whom he would be going with had promised them that he would provide the child a better life than the one he had. But he did have a wonderful life right now, isn't it? But what he didn't understand was his parents were struggling to meed their ends meet. They did not want their children to struggle, so they took this tough decision to send this child away so that he could get a better life.

Mom and dad were heart-broken to give away their son, the only consolation was that the gentleman promised their kid a better life, whereas the kid thought his parents forsook him. He was young enough to even know what it meant to be forsaken.

Soon, he was shifted to a new place, from there he was taken to one more home. He got a luxurious room all for himself, he was very happy. He soon forgot his parents and started enjoying his new life. Life was once again fun, no one disturbed him. He had lot of friends who were of his age. They seemed very happy, life went on.

One day, he was taken away and in a jiffy broken and poured to be fried into a pan.



PS : Thank you Neha for prompting me to write on this :-)

Dream Girl

He first saw her just after she wore her helmet and started the ignition of her bike. Something of her caught his attention. It was her long flowing tresses. He wanted to get a glimpse of the lovely face. Yes...lovely face. He was sure that she definitely had a lovely face, her tresses complimenting her.

He was seconds late, she had her helmet on, was about to speed off, her wavy hair gleaming in the sun, soft and silky, he wanted to feel it. What was happening? He was attracted to her. An impulse told him that he should not let go of her. He wanted to know her. It was all happening in a jiffy. He had to decide his next move quickly. But she was already leaving the place.

He knew!! He knew he had to follow her. Off he went, started his vehicle and sped. He spotted her riding few yards away. He decided to follow her. She had a perfect height and was slim. He was dreaming about such a woman all these days. He was observing her as she sped ahead of him, her faded jeans, her shoes....He just wanted a glimpse of her.

He did not know how long he had to follow her, but he decided he wont quit unless he saw her. He continued to follow her for a while. She slowed down her vehicle, he noticed it was the traffic signal. It was noon and the roads were virtually empty due to the sultriness and the heat. He squeezed his way so that he could stand beside her. The digital clock at the signal showed 148 seconds more.

His mind was racing fast, should he initiate a conversation? Should he continue to follow her? He could not take his eyes off her flowing hair. He wanted to feel the softness of her tresses, forget himself!!

To his luck, she took off the helmet and when he saw her, he was awe-struck.............

For he saw a perfect and neatly maintained goatee.

Too late

He was always aloof, taking things easy and was never responsible. But that year was special to him. It was his graduating year; he would be free from the clutches of studies, exams and professors. He dreamt big, dreamt of securing a job in a nice organization and earning handsome, having fun throughout.

He knew he had this one final hurdle to cross, final year in engineering was most easy. He would just have to write one theory and submit two project works. He had elaborately planned and even succeeded in buying some exotic project. Easy way than slog for months. His project works were ready and all that was required was submission and one final theory exam and then he was free bird.

The project submission, the semester everything went well. He even managed to get his attendance adjusted. He even attended a couple of interviews and the results were positive. Things seemed to be working his way; in spite of his irresponsible attitude and carefree ways.

Just one last ordeal left. He had to write one; just one theory paper. He never attended any lectures; as he thought it was not necessary; management paper after all. You write anything and you end up getting some marks. Pass marks was all he wished for. The subject was so generic that he never even felt like browsing once to revise.

The exam was scheduled. All set, projects done, college done with, just one exam more and then he is out of this ordeal. The day before the exams, he sat to read and understand the concepts; thinking he would be done within a couple of hours. It didn't seem to, he decided to sit whole night and read through it.

He was done with some time during early hours in the morning, he was satisfied and happy with his achievement that he could revise a subject in under 12 hours. He thought he deserved few hours of sleep before he got ready for his exams which was scheduled morning at 9:30 AM

He woke up that morning and was all rejuvenated. He came out of his bath and checked the time to leave home for college.

It was 10 AM.....

Those 3 magical words

Her thoughts just brought him that unexplainable ecstasy. He would just wait to catch a glimpse of her. He could not explain how he felt when he thought about her, when he saw her.

He had heard about numerous love stories; discussed about love and its magic, how intoxicating it was. But he did not really understand how euphoric the feeling would be; until now. He had had heard about love, heard his friends discussing about love; only to understand its magnitude now.

He would not forget the day he first saw her. He was loitering in the park; when she walked with an acquaintance. The first thing he noticed about her was her hair; long and silky. At that moment; he just wanted to feel her long tresses. She was the first lady who evoked a strange blissful feeling in him; the most amazing feeling.

He had heard about infatuation; puppy love and all that; but was very sure his was true love. He had been her secret admirer for quite some time; he decided to confess his feelings for her. He wanted to express how much he loved her; he wanted to share with her the future he has dreamt for them; all the wonderful things they would do together.

As these thoughts poured over; he forgot that he was sitting in the same place in the park where he first saw her. He knew she would pass by and he had decided to steal some time from her and confess; proclaim his true feelings for her.

Awww, he forgot to carry with him some present; a bunch of flowers would have been so appropriate. So nervous he was that he didn't have a thought about it; but that was alright. All that was running on his mind was how he would approach her. He was fighting with all these overwhelming thoughts and his nervousness; when he saw her approaching from distance. He had this exhilarating joy the moment he saw her. He waited for her; and as she came by; she gave such a charming smile that he could faint right there.

She walked close to him; and took a seat beside him. He knew this was the moment; it was now or never. He mustered all his courage; drew a deep breathe and was about to propose; when she just saw one of her acquaintances; her friend, he always hated him for being so close with her. That guy was the villain for him. As she was about to get up and go to meet her friend; he decided to just tell it out. He struggled as she smiled and was walking away; when he wanted to say. All he could manage was a feeble

"Bow Wow Wow...." as she elegantly walked away wagging her tail.

Such perfection

"I want the panels made of rose wood" said the young man in all his enthusiasm.

"Sure sir, the panels made of rose wood, with intricate carvings of vines; as you say" said the craftsman

"I also want the drape to be richly colored satin; something like royal blue?" the man declared with a bit of confusion

"Alright sir, royal blue is sure a nice color" replied the craftsman waiting to be appreciated.

"Oh yes, and I should be able to sleep comfortably" the young man insisted; his energy abound.

"Sure sir, That will be no problem at all sir. The panels are smooth and soft, and cozy" the craftsman said with pride

"But somehow it seems to me that I wont be able to fold my hands comfortably without hitting the sides. Please make sure it is indeed comfortable. I will come back in 5 days time" said the man while the craftsman nodded helplessly at the young man's dissatisfaction

The young man sprinted away as the craftsman murmured -


"So much for a coffin"

Oh No!!!

He was picking up his medicines from a pharmacy store and was at the counter about to pay the cashier; when suddenly, he noticed someone staring at him. He grew conscious. A man, a rugged looking stern guy; a policeman standing at a close proximity; intently gazing at him. He just walked in to quickly buy some medicines; leaving his motor bike unattended at the no-parking zone. He knew his vehicle parked there might soon invite traffic jam. It was peak time and the roads go choc-a-block very quickly.

But he was in a hurry, and had no time to park his 2 wheeler at the designated parking area; at the basement of this complex. He had a hard day at work, his supervisor on his tail forcing him to finish on some task that came unannounced. He was tired, his head getting pounded hard; as if being hammered on both side of his temples....he had a nasty headache. He just wanted to rush home; get away from these hustle and bustle; the traffic.... and take some much needed rest. He was praying hard not to get into an ordeal with the policeman; he has had already enough for today.

There seemed to be no escape. The policeman was sure waiting for him. He paid at the counter and turned; took a couple of steps; all the while the cop waiting for this guy to pass by and he trying his best to avoid any sort of eye contact with the cop. As he got close, the police walked towards him. He fretted and was thinking of rushing to his bike, kick start and wroom; thereby avoiding a penalty. There seemed to no way, the policeman directly obstructing his way, and now he was quickly thinking oodles of reasons to excuse and save himself from a probable fine. Something told him not everything he thought was right.

Then as the man approached him; he realized he was just a watchman; not a police as he mistook. His stress has numbed his senses. He was relieved that it wasn't a cop when the man said "I wanted to warn you earlier; but you ran towards the store. That's why I have been waiting by your bike."

Just when he thought it was all fine; he was left red-faced when the watchman said

"Sir, Your fly is open"