Smita,😊
This part is about connections. Connect like links of chain. CATENATE is what it is!!
When Arnav Singh Raizada slipped back into their room at Omkar, Kushi was in the arms of sleep. She had a peaceful cherubic look that made him touch her. His merest touch made her murmur his name with a smile dancing on her lips, while slipping into deep sleep. Seeing her he too slides in beside her and pulls her in a hug.
"A hug overcomes all boundaries. It speaks words within the mind that cannot be spoken."
Feeling the familiar warmth beside her she snuggles into her favorite place and makes herself comfortable and him content.
"My favorite place to be is inside of your hugs where it's warm and loving."
"He lay there, smiling slightly, feeling as though he held his world in his arms"
"A hug is like a boomerang - you get it back right away" ~ Bill Keane
Soon his thoughts started to move towards their added responsibility. He was certain that Kushi would be a good mother, in fact, The Best. He had seen her mothering all the kids at Omkar and knew her loving heart. What he was uncertain was about himself. He did not have a good example set by his father that could be followed. May be he could ask Baba or Mamaji for guidance!
"Faith is a knowledge within the heart, beyond the reach of proof" ~ Khalil Gibran
The very next minute he felt foolish for thinking whether he was capable of doing the right things. Why was he apprehensive?
"Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase"~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
He had his Kushi with him who will guide him when needed! That was all that was needed for him. His guiding star was always by his side. She was his link. With these thoughts he too slipped contently into the Land of Nod.
This was how his family found them, sleeping hugging one another.
"Laagat he, Saasumma, they are still getting over the hangober (hangover) of their honeymoon in Shimla.", said incorrigible Mami.
All laughed, and withdrew, leaving the couple to catch up on their sleep.
Nani said, laughing, "NK Bitwaa, call them when it is time for the wedding. Or they will sleep right through it!"
In the evening, Aarti set out to help Buaji for the ceremony. All were dressed up and busy. Payal was being dressed in her wedding finery by Kushi and Anjali, Arnav Singh Raizada, Baba and the kids were busy in the mandap area. Her eyes searched for a glimpse of Her Sunflower, but couldn't locate. Suddenly she found him coming with Akash resplendent in the sky blue Sherwani making her hold her breath. Soon Payal too was brought out. Payal was dressed in the traditional way in a red saree similar to the one given to her, but more ornate. A thought of why was she too given a saree similar as Payal's crossed her mind. She found Kushi dressed traditionally, in a golden yellow saree with a glow lit from within making her look like the diya lit for Devi Maiyya in a dark room. Kushi's happiness and contentment on watching her family was displayed on her face.
"Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family" ~ George Burns
With Anjali by her side Kushi searched for the hiding Aarti. When she spotted her she sent Chotu to bring her. Chotu who always followed Kush Di's bidding to the letter T, didn't let Aarti get away. He made her come near his Di. Kushi pulled her to stand beside her. Putting an arm around her shoulders Kushi grinned at NK who was all smiles much to Aarti's annoyance.
"Love is a chain of love as nature is a chain of life" ~ Truman Capote
Aarti watched the ceremony filled with gaiety and mirth, standing beside Kushi. They all witnessed the couple, Akash Singh Raizada and Payal link their future together.
Soon Arnav Singh Raizada came near his wife and enquired how she felt. Relieved after knowing that she was fine he complimented her. His adoring looks made Kushi blush and Aarti who witnessed it felt uncomfortable and unsettled.
While she was watching the ceremony with a detached numbness, she suddenly felt the thaw setting in. She sensed the presence of Her Sunflower behind her close by, who left no opportunity to brush her unnoticed by all.
"You never lose by loving. You always lose by holding back" ~ Barbara de Angelis
This made her tremble. It invaded all her senses. It unnerved her.
"Love is like war: easy to begin but very hard to stop" ~ H. L. Mencken
She trembled, withdrawing her arms from her sides, and crossing them under her chest to protect herself against his insidious attack. But he was relentless. He touched her when ever he could, where ever he could, finally whispering in her ear, "Now that was wonderful, wasn't it?"
She stared at him, startled. What the!
"The wedding! I meant the wedding." His eyes twinkled. "What did you think I was talking about?", he murmured.
Aarti escaped from there and went near her car. Thinking that Her Sunflower would easily spot her there she went into the shadows of the building hidden from others, away from the crowd. Being alone, Aarti started to console herself of this being the last day she would never need to meet any of them ever again. But the thought of never meeting Her Sunflower pulled a tug in her heart. She felt the warmth his presence brought her, his touch started to invade her senses once more making her draw a deep sigh! She felt they will both get used to it in time. Feeling the burn of hot tears at the back of her eyes, her thoughts drifted to when she had pulled a curtain to her tears. That was the day her sister succumbed to death driven so by her father. She had resisted to give in to the temptation of bursting into tears even when he had ill treated her mother, broken the CD's she had bought saving from the meager earnings, when he had starved her for two days for bringing in a stray puppy. With all the turmoil she had faced in her life her tears were frozen.
"A family is a place where principles are hammered and honed on the anvil of everyday living" ~ Charles R. Swindoll
With a family such as hers and the atmosphere of her house, she had been made numb to all good things in life. She feels reality is different. She feels good things happen only in fairy tales and they were never meant for her.
"One does not substitute oneself for the past, one merely adds to it a new link" ~ Paul Cezanne
What she doesn't realize is you cannot change your past but how you link with your future is of utmost importance.
"The hardest thing in life to learn is which bridge to cross and which to burn" ~ David Russell
This is the link in the chain that she has to choose to attach herself. Past or the future! Past which is quite murky with the bad memories of her father or the rosy future basking in the love of Her Sunflower! She is at crossroads! Whatever she chooses links both her mother and herself and determines even the path to be tread by NK.
Suddenly she feels two warm hands on her shoulders. Its Her Sunflower who has time and again brought warmth into her despite her rejection.
"A rejection is nothing more than a necessary step in the pursuit of success" ~ Bo Bennett
He knows that it is so without knowing her story.
"From the very first moment I first saw you, that's when I knew, all the dreams I held in my heart had suddenly come true"
Knowing what his heart wants he is ready to pursue his love relentlessly. He pulls her into a warm hug.
"There's something in a simple hug
That always warms the heart,
It welcomes us back home
With an open loving heart'"
~Johnny Ray Ryder, Jr., "A Simple Hug"
Her response when his lips touches her, encourages him and Aarti gets her First Kiss
"Love is a symbol of eternity. It wipes out all sense of time, destroying all memory of a beginning and all fear of an end"
~ Madame de Stael
Aarti who is filled with personal inadequacies, emotionally unequipped, low self esteem due to her upbringing, masks it successfully under the guise of nonchalance.
"The biggest emotion in creation is the bridge to optimism" ~ Brian May
Will the love of NK, Her Sunflower help her create the bridge to optimism and fill his life with sunshine too? Will she CATENATE too?
PICK OF THE DAY
He was going to be a father. Khushi was going to be a mother. They would have a baby soon, in a few months. He looked down at Khushi.
She would make a good mother. Maybe she could remember good things about her mother. And she was used to looking after and loving the children at Omkar. She would be a good mother. Not just a good mother. But a perfect, wonderful mother.
But what kind of father would he make? He clenched his jaw. What he could remember of his father was enough to make him want to puke. Would he be such a good-for-nothing father? Were there books on how to be a good father?
What if he made a mistake? And hurt the small jaan Khushi was carrying? He looked at her flat tummy, and slowly put his hand over his baby.
He whispered, "I ...I don't know how to be a father. I hope I am a good one. I...I promise to try hard to be a good father. To look after you always..."
He thought for a while. Maybe Baba would help him. And he could always ask Mamaji.
"In every conceivable manner, the family is link to our past, bridge to our future" ~ Alex Haley
These thoughts of Arnav Singh Raizada, reflects how important it is to have a good family as family is the link to our past, fastener to our present and also bridge to our future.
That's it for today. Hope you enjoy it!
Hop, Skip, & Jump!
Thank u, Rashmi. A beautiful interpretation of the part.
Every marriage holds two people who complete each other. Arnav is realising this fact. That he can depend on Khushi to help him when he falters.
Aarti is realising how much NK means to her.
Aarti is one person who does not suffer from delusions. She knows her past & her present very well. She knows herself very well. She knows other people very well.
She has charted out a future for herself. Will NK let her travel that path alone, is the question.
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