A Pocketful Of Peace

29. The Dark Night...

"We were excited at the prospects of exploring a new place. Abhay sir was explaining all about his hometown. For the first time, he was willing to share the details of his family with us. I still remember we had finished dinner and were sitting by the fireplace- just like we are now. Everything was packed up and we were ready to leave at daybreak. Before retiring to bed, we were just chatting about our future or rather, he was." Prasanna looked up at Aman and with a sad smile, continued...

"Your father had envisaged a great future for you. He had already chalked out a career plan for you. When your mother objected saying it was early to decide about your career and that even you should have a say in it, Abhay sir in his defence said it was inevitable that you take charge of your life at a much younger age. Now when I look back at his words, what he said, actually turned out to be true. You took charge of your life and you are doing rather well. He would have been proud of you." Prasanna said, with a hint of pride in his voice.

Aman simply bowed his head, closed his eyes for a moment and let those words sink in. Those were the first set of words in his appreciation from his Appa. It meant a lot more than what he had imagined for all these years. And to top it, Prasanna had said that Aman's father would have been proud of his achievements. It really did mean a lot and it took a great deal of efforts from Aman to stay composed after this realisation.

"What else did he talk about that night?" Aman asked after a moment. "That was the last time he talked, wasn't it?"

"Yes. The last time when I got to hear that lively and carefree voice. Your naming ceremony was planned for the following week but he had already decided on the name. He wanted to name you Aman. When Shanti asked for the reason, the proud father in him replied, 'the two crucial feelings one has to have, in order to lead a happy and fulfilling life are hope and peace- Asha and Aman. I already have Asha by my side, now I will have Aman too. These two are I can ever have in this lifetime.' You were the most precious of all- you were his lifeline, son."

A cock crowed somewhere distantly, announcing sunrise. A new day was beckoning... and so was the past. Aman was torn between wanting to know more about his family and wanting to run away from what he knew was coming. The last moments that his parents had lived on this earth, the way they had loved him and cradled him for the last time; he wanted to hear all of it. But that also meant he will have to listen to the tragedy that struck them down. He vaguely knew how they perished in a fire, but to hear a first hand account of the same tragedy was overwhelming for him.

"You were sleeping in your mother's lap. Shanti offered to carry you to your cradle. Knowing how fond of you she was, Asha tai didn't argue and Shanti took you to the other wing."

"Wing?" Sandy asked confused.

"Yeah. Didn't I tell you how big our home was? We had nine bedrooms, interconnected with passageways, one huge living room, a fully equipped modern kitchen, two dining rooms- one small and the other a party hall, a game room, a home theatre, a gym and a library. Sprawling porches at the entrance. A picturesque driveway adorned with sculpted garden view and the backyard boasted of the best kitchen garden in town. We always had home grown, fresh organic produce to cook and serve! Our kitchen garden was our pride. Asha tai planned it but Shanti and I toiled endlessly to bring her ideas to a flourishing existence."

"Wow!" Sandy exclaimed. "So that's where this gardening hobby comes from, is it?"

"Of course!" Prasanna replied. "Asha tai inculcated those habits in us. She taught us to be in love with nature. I wonder why Aman chose insects over plants though. I planned a whole garden and planted a whole lot of those plants... indigenous, exotic breeds and yet, this fellow here loves to go chasing behind those damn insects!"