Those Angelic Musings

Filling the time vacuum.

- Vijai Pant

“The elderly need so little, but they need that little so much.”

It took the old woman some effort to turn to the other side on her bed to see the smiling faces of the two children. The framed photograph did not appear to her nearly for four decades. Probably the happy memories of their growing years still fresh in her mind made her weak eyes not see the distinctly yellowish tinge in the black-and-white photograph.

“Being two years younger than Sheetal you had always been the pampered one. Do you remember, Saurabh, how you would make me run after you with the glass of milk, how you would lay down some condition or the other to finish it off and how you would persuade me to buy those iced lollies while returning from the bazaar?” she wanted to ask aloud the preteenager in the frame.

She didn’t do it, but the very thought of it brought a faint smile to her withered lips.

“Maa jee there is enough dalia left of the morning, but if you want, I can quickly rustle up a sabzi for you” These words of Kamala, her domestic help, broke the old woman’s reverie.

When Sheetal and Saurabh had left the nest pursuing their individual careers, Mrs Dubey was all alone. The empty nest syndrome would haunt her and she would excitedly wait for the young collegians to come home during breaks.

However, for the last four years she has had Kamala by her side. Kamala lived close by. She would run errands for the old woman who remained confined within the four walls. During these years Kamala had become a close confidant of Mrs Dubey, her maa jee, the latter sharing with her all – well nearly all – her feelings.

“You know, Kamala, how much I eat. I might not be able to finish off even that left-over dalia in the evening. In fact, I would suggest that you take some home. Just leave a bowl for me,” the old woman replied.