HOMECOMING

Whenever Somi comes close to the mountains, her mood changes.

- by Munmun Dasgupta

The smell and beauty of the mountains feel like they are hugging her with love. But as soon as the word love comes to her mind, she becomes quiet. Her lips puff up slightly, as if she is upset. Seeing her like this, no one would think she is a schoolteacher. But that is just her nature.

As the car started going uphill, she began to feel sleepy. Somi was feeling tired now. She had not slept well on the train the whole night before. On top of that, she had gone on this trip alone against everyone's wishes, and her 1-year-old marriage was already going through problems.

Slowly, she was entering the quiet and lonely world of the mountains. Resting her head on the seat, she closed her eyes for a while. This trip had caused many arguments. A 27-year-old woman going alone to the mountains, people did not agree with it. But surprisingly, her father stood by her side this time.

Somi’s father, Abhijit, is usually a strict man, and he often does not agree with her. Also, Somi had recently left her in laws house and returned home with her bags packed. Since then, she had stopped talking to Rupak. Somi knew that Rupak could not handle his busy travel job and also deal with constant fights. This time, Somi forced him to choose either to leave the job or leave his wife. Rupak tried to explain many things, though he was annoyed, but Somi did not listen.

She came back to her parents’ house. Even after staying there for some days, she did not feel settled. Then she decided to go on a trip alone, completely alone. Her mother got very angry when she heard this, but after a few days of silence, her father agreed. He explained to her mother, “Let her go. What will happen? She is old enough. When she can decide not to accept a marriage, she is mature enough to travel alone.”

Somi’s car kept climbing higher. The surroundings were beautiful beyond words, so many shades of green all around, with a deep blue sky above.