From Moments to Memories to Marriage Thoughts - I

As I was sitting on my cozy bed watching a romantic bollywood flick, all engrossed in a scene where the bride and groom face the holy fire, I hoped at least someday such hot wrath of holy fire would burn off my bad karmas. It was 2 am, and I was half asleep. I couldn’t feel my feet. Maybe it was because of the biting cold of wintry weather or maybe because I was sitting cross-legged for too long. My brain swung between sleep and semi-consciousness, and at a point the couple on the screen blurred. All I could see was a hazy picture of the bride clad in red from head to toe and my eyes closed.

*

“Mamma, I want to wear that frock and pink bellies please.” I said as mum opened the bag to take out my clothes.

“No. You’ll wear it when all we family members will go for the picnic tomorrow, you’ll spoil the frock by then. You’ll run in the fields, climb on mango tress of the orchards with your cousins and make it dirty. Frock and the pink bellies tomorrow, ok?” mamma replied. She got busy with the relatives with all her brimmed enthusiasm as she met them after long.

“I want to wear it now and show it Dadima, pleaseeeee mum” I insisted, puppy eyes as I tried to put the words as intensely as possible.

My sister, Divya jija walked past the window of my room jus then. I saw she was also dressed in her comfy old capris then.

“Okay” I agreed all of a sudden with my mother instantly. Surprised and relieved my mother put on a white cotton frock, combed my hair and I ran out to join my cousins outside. We all went to the fields, in the tractor. I sat beside Divya jija, constantly watching how she behaved, sat, what she said, etc, smiling at her whenever our eyes met. She was the eldest and the most affectionate among the group. As the tractor stopped, we hopped off on by one. I did too, but instead of landing on my feet, I fell and landed on all four.

I woke up suddenly with a jerk as my head fell off my palm. I smiled. The television was still on. I realized how ancient the ‘tractor’ days were. They seemed so far away. It made me wonder whether they really existed. Thos were the days when deciding on something was so simple. I hugged the warm pillow beside me and my eyes began to drop again… Everything around turned black again.

*