From & To Sathish #5 - Page 75

Avan, Aval Adhu 247

Our worlds were both dark, and nothing would be normal, but together we would make our own world filled with light and love. This is what happens when soul mates finally join as one. The stars align, the heavens sing, and everything else fades away. You know you'll always have strength in your heart, and courage in your eyes. Our future wouldn't be normal, and would be different from the rest, but no less perfect.” — Angela Richardson

There are no Khans or some other handsome hunk from the movies standing in the doorway with a guitar slung over his shoulder with his hand raised, palm facing up and begging with his eyes to place your hand and love in it. There are no doe-eyed, fair beauties from the movies standing before you declaring their love for you saying that it matters not that you are ugly, poor and uneducated and that her love is eternal for she loves you for your soul which she knows is beautiful.

None in real and practical life run across fields, stand on mountains and sing " Tujhe Dekha To Ye Jana Sanam " or declare loudly " Kya karon haai,Kuch kuch hota hai".

Nearly 90 per cent of marriages that take place in India are arranged. So, either the smile that filled the lips of the bride and bridegroom stays on from the moment of their engagement and lingers on for a few years ( Hopefully) after marriage or the look of horror stays on until their death.

Jokes and puns aside, most stay married not because of love but because of the word responsibility and in that very word are other words, meanings and virtues like sacrifice, discipline, patience, tolerance and that most important emotion, state of mind. Putting family before themselves and putting to flames their own needs and wants.

That is love. At least another sort of love in my opinion has also made all this possible. " All of this possible " you may wonder and my answer is civilization and the growth of our human species in all fields over time.

Through the heavy fog-filled darkness, Ravi felt her secret angst stemming from some secret part of her mind and he knew that he had to step out of his character, shed the safety cloak of his persona and approach her gently and broach the reason for her suffering.

' Gayatri ' he whispered her name and she felt instantly beautiful. It was the way he said it and in her heart, she knew that he was addressing her in such a loving manner for the very first time and in a very long time.

' Gayatri, if there is one lesson life has taught me very well, it is about the problems that we all face in our lives and some on a daily basis.'

She looked at him and both Partha and Daksha joined her and stared at Ravi.

Partha thought ' My buddy is going to say something so beautiful and so profound that it will immediately ease the situation and things will return to normal.'

Daksha thought, ' Wonder what the man will say to ease the tension. But, regardless of what he says, I will use that against him and learn more from him in our next argument.'

Gayatri thought to herself, ' Is he going to convince me, sweet talk me and try his best to put the genie back in the lamp? Sorry, my lover, my hero, but we are in a mess. Sadly, I know about it but you don't and I hope you will never get to know it. I am sorry baby but life has f..ked both of us and all that remains now is to protect the third one who casts such a long and deep shadow in both pf our lives. A magician will pull a rabbit or even a lion out of his hat but I doubt if you or I can pull ourselves out of this mess.'

Ravi's voice was soft and caring in its tone but loud and clear in its message.

' There is nothing in life, no problem that cannot be sorted out by sitting and talking about it. All it takes is time, clear heads and a bit of patience from the concerned people and I am sure that it can be sorted out. So,' he stopped and in the darkness of the dark foggy night, she saw his teeth twinkle in his smile and wondered to herself if a row of stars had been arranged between his lips.

' So, stop worrying and burdening yourself with what is so obviously weighing on your mind and please, share the problem with us and then together we can work it out and see what can be done about it.'

She looked at him with an unsmiling face and in a grim voice, said, ' All right. I will share my problem with you. But, on one condition, and that is you have to first answer honestly to some of my questions. If your answers are okay and satisfactory, then I will speak about my problem frankly by placing it before you.'

Turning to Daksha, ' Will you stand by me and the stand that I have taken and will you support me in this endeavour of mine? You know the law pretty well. Hence, my request to you to stand as judge, jury and also as my witness in this question and answer session for I am sure you will be a better judge than I and Partha and maybe even Ravi himself.'

Daksha's eyes and body which usually projected confidence now seemed to have abandoned it as she looked at the one person she knew she could turn to for clarity and guidance.

Ravi smiled and whispered reassuringly, ' Ducks, Gayatri is 100 per cent correct in saying that you are good as both judge and jury and I am sure you will make a good witness for both the prosecution and the witness which I am sure is a turn up for the books.

Avan, Aval Adhu 248

“The repressed memory is like a noisy intruder being thrown out of the concert hall. You can throw him out, but he will bang on the door and continue to disturb the concert. The analyst opens the door and says, If you promise to behave yourself, you can come back in.” — Theodor Reik

There have been many a time when I have sat alone on the beach ( before all this fame for me Satish for acting in the notorious role of Gopi ) on my own with the only occasional glance of interest thrown at me and with very few people recognising me from my previous television work ( Most come and tell me that they were in their 3 or 4th std when they saw Aanandham )

There have been several times when I have watched young couples walking with their child or children and somehow it always brought a smile to my face and filled my soul with joy but invariably always drowned me with sorrow.

I used to think ' Sat, you are an adult, a middle-aged man and you shouldn't be thinking of stuff that happened when you were a kid.' But, I did then, and funnily enough, I still do. I look up into the clear blue skies and talk to the universe and ask it many questions.

' Why? What did I do wrong? Was I punished for some other life's bad karma? ' and always that silence. But, in that silence, my own soul, my own mind rose to protect me and defend me by telling me that it was okay and that I was doing all right despite the pits and peaks and that I should look to myself for all that which was lost and which will be lost. Someday. So many questions and so few answers, and damn, so little time to seek them out.

I see grey. You see faded black. She sees dirty white and she sees them all and sadly feels them all. In her heart, she sees it all and feels it as a painting that is slowly melting causing its colours to run down the canvas like tears from a baby's eyes.

Ravi's breath was slow, steady in its entrance and exit and yet the air brought none of its grey and cold substance to his lungs and to his body. He sat wearing his usual open, calm and trusting look on his face and then suddenly he said something that felt like both heaven and hell.

' Gayatri. I love you and I will keep on loving you, No matter what this night or tomorrow and the future might bring, I will continue to love you. That is my promise to you.'

She wanted to run into his arms, swallow his breath and dig a hole into his soul and bury herself safely in its sanctity. Her vagina still felt pleasantly sore from all the love he had given her and her breasts and nipples still tingled from all the attention they had received from his swirling tongue.

She could have done that and peace would have reigned over her and all around her. " Peace. No. Maybe happiness but not peace for peace is eternal while happiness is brief and temporary " Gayatri thought to herself.

But Gayatri knew that there was no turning back the clock now. Not after she knew who Madhu from Ravi's past really was and that had changed everything. She knew in her heart that she could not be the same with Ravi after knowing that he was the past of Madhu who was her stepmother and that she was his past for whom he had waited in solitude for more than 25 years.

' Gayatri, look at me ' Ravi called her out again and when she looked at him, he said, ' Just say it, please. You know me and you know my friends. What is it, Gayatri? What is troubling you so badly that it makes me wonder if your spirit has abandoned you, leaving you bereft and empty?'

Partha joined in, ' Gayatri, please forgive me for echoing Ravi's question but he is correct in his observation for something is off and very wrong with you. You are not the same person that you were earlier in the day.'

Daksha turned around completely to take a good look at the person who happened to be the eye of the storm and who was sitting to her left, and using her right hand, she gently lifted Gayatri's chin and looking into her eyes, ' Girl, it is obvious to all of us that whatever is weighing and preying on your mind has sadly sucked the joy out of your soul and in the process has left us all confused and very sad.'

Waving to the men, ' Forget them, confide in me. Talk to me for I am a woman and probably I might just understand you better than those two guys.'

Gayatri smiled and planting a soft peck of a kiss on Daksha's cheek, thanked her and said, ' Sorry, but this is between Ravi and me. Feel free to join in and answer the questions that I am going to ask him. But, the third question is specifically for him and I don't want the two of you confusing either him or me.'

Turning she faced Ravi and proceeded to ask the first of her three questions and the very nature of the question was enough to stump and confound both Partha and Daksha who looked at Gayatri with their faces drowned in both astonishment and confusion.

' Ravi, do you think Lord Rama was justified in killing Vali, the monkey king and that too by shooting an arrow into his chest from hiding behind a tree?'

Good work:

You've been doing good work. Keep it up, and add to it.

You've been making a difference, and life has benefitted from your efforts. Continue those efforts, and discover how you can make them even more effective.

Does it sometimes feel like your efforts don't matter? What you do matters to the extent you choose to make it matter, and that's a choice you have in every moment.

Often the encouragement from others is absent, and sometimes the world sends you a flood of negativity, even downright hostility. Make note of the feedback, perhaps inserting some reasonable adjustments, and move forward with what you know is good and right and worthwhile.

You've made some mistakes in the past and you're likely to make a few more as time goes by. Yet from every mistake you can learn, you can improve, and you can carry on.

You've learned much about what succeeds and what doesn't, what's effective and what's a waste, what adds richness and fulfillment to life. Take a deep, peaceful breath, be thankful for how far you've come, and keep up the good work.Shared message

Anonymous 😊

https://youtu.be/OnxLh7ZiL1I

Avan, Aval Adhu 249

“People say you should give until it hurts. I say you should give until it stops hurting. Know what I mean?” Elizabeth Berg

There is dark and there is the black of the night and then there is dark and the blue of the sky and soul. In the absence of light and in the absence of sight, we are all blind to the difference between black and blue.

' What, Vali and Ram? You mean, Lord Ram from Ramayana ?' Partha's questions popped out like bullets from a machine gun along with his eyeballs that grew in size comparable to a cricket ball and seeing his mouth agape and fearing his organs might just pop out and spill out, Daksha used her left arm and placed a well-aimed elbow into his left ribcage and whispered loudly, ' Yes, you moron and I am warning you to keep your mouth shut and lips zipped or else, I will slap you unconscious and will do it openly and not from behind a tree.'

Partha quickly shut his mouth until it resembled a sealed bank vault and looked furtively at Gayatri and Ravi and finally at Daksha who did the talking for both of them.

' And here we were expecting some really complicated questions and you go and ask Ravi this rather simple one that has a well-known answer.' Beaming a wide smile, ' Of course it was cruel and a sin to kill someone and that too from hiding. That is cheating and in legal terms, it is called cold-blooded murder or premeditated murder, and it is classified as murder in the first degree and the accused is handed out the maximum punishment. That means either death by hanging or life without parole.'

Partha clapped loudly and said, ' Hear, hear. I agree with my wife totally. It was cowardly and a sin to kill a great warrior such as Vali and that too from hiding.

Both husband and wife looked at Ravi eagerly and hoping he would answer in the same vein and get it over with and move on to Gayatri's second question and be done with it.

But their hopes faded the moment they saw the slight smile bloom like a bud that suddenly makes a colourful appearance among the green leaves and stalks and it is virtually impossible to not notice it.

From the experience that she had gained from many years of arguing, debating and discussing with Ravi, Daksha knew that the smile was loaded and that it hid many secrets and she knew that it would stay secret and it would stay locked between Ravi and Gayatri.

Placing her lips close to Partha's left ear, she whispered softly, ' Baby, this is no simple question and neither has it come out of the blue leaving us to scratch our heads looking for clues. I fear there is some valid point, some deep purpose to this question and I am sure Ravi is going to answer it and answer it well but I am sure it will be something that will be understood only by her.'

Partha's eyes opened wide and he stared at Daksha who blushed, ' well, that is because I studied the law.'

Partha whispered, ' I am sorry but you are sadly mistaken. My surprise was not because of your answer but the lack of any information or understanding in it. I understood all that and I did not study law.'

Daksha's upper lip lifted in a snarl and her sharp canines glinted like knives in the dark, and Partha did the best he could and leaned forward and placed a soft, wet kiss on her lips.

Gayatri stared at Ravi and Ravi stared back at Gayatri.

Gayatri thought, ' Baby, my love, I am asking you these questions so that I can lead you to that point where you might or might not grasp what is going on in me and save me, save us both from hell that I have unknowingly dragged us into. I am asking you these questions so that you can calm me down with your answers and also help me better understand what can be, what will be and what shouldn't be.

Ravi's thoughts were nearly the same. The only difference was that he did not know the reason for the simple yet complicated question that Gayatri had just asked him.

Their thoughts were interrupted by Advocate Daksha who had decided to use this premise to gently goad Ravi into action.

' It looks like master sir is stumped for an answer to such a simple question.'

Ravi nodded his head and replied to her observation. ' A simple question it may be but the answer is rather complicated as it falls under the purview of both human laws and the laws of God.'

This evoked an immediate remark that was also a rebuke from Daksha. ' God and universe, master sir. Sorry but I disagree. Clearly, you have an act of a well-planned murder that was executed to perfection.'

Partha joined his wife by saying, ' Dei Ravi, come on da. It is obvious that Lord Ram knew that he would not be able to kill Vali, the monkey king if he faced him in battle. I know it has been a long time since we left school and comic books behind us but we never leave or forget our classics such as Ramayana and Mahabharata.'

Turning to Daksha, Partha beaming confidently, ' Vali was blessed by Lord Brahma and was given a necklace that bestowed him with a strange power. The necklace would absorb half the power of his opponent and make Vali stronger and his enemy weaker and this made him invincible and a mighty warrior.'

' My question was for Ravi and although I am grateful for your answers I am waiting for his answer and his thoughts on this subject ' and looked at Ravi and asked him if he wanted more time to think about the question.

Ravi smiled and shook his head, ' Yes, I do need time. But no, not to answer the question but time to deliver it in a way which will hopefully satisfy you and the others.'

Gayatri squeezed her eyes in pain as it racked her heart and head and screamed silently inside her soul and her memory flashed back to the time when her father had come back home newly married but for the second time and to a woman who was nearly her age or maybe a year or two older than her.

It was sometime in the middle of 2000 and every channel worth it's salt was carrying the news of the kidnapping of Kannada actor Rajkumar by Veerappan and other encounter killings in Bombay.

Gayatri had heard her dad tell her stepmother that these encounter killings were all staged and fake and that the cops did not have the guts to go into the areas infested by thugs and goondas and so were resorting to other devious plans. All that was a matter of opinion but her usually placid and quiet stepmother Madhu had calmly retorted back in her own soft and pleasant manner but one always knew when you had been told off and when you had been asked to shut the f..k up.

The reason for Madhu's retort of an answer was her Dad's loud and coming to think of it crude observation when he had said, ' All these encounter killings have a precedent in your favourite story of Ramayana, Madhu. It is like the killing of Vali by your God, Lord Ram and that too from hiding. Let me rephrase that word killing to murder. A murder, in cold blood and with that act Ram revealed himself to be just a coward and not a true warrior and a brave man as he is portrayed.'

She remembered Madhu's calm answer word for word as they were carved in her soul and could never be erased.

Sadly, a few years later, Madhu would be chanting day and night the very shloka that was used by Lord Ram during his battle with Ravan to help her dad battle cancer, which had now metastasised in his lungs and bones

She looked at Ravi and thought, ' I am sorry my love but I am doing this for a reason and it concerns both of us. If your answer is right and matches her answer then it means our doom.'

#ஹிந்தி_யாருக்குத்_தாய்மொழி-?????

#தமிழ்நாடு- #தமிழ்_மொழி

கேரளா- மலையாள மொழி

ஆந்திரா-

தெலுங்கானா- தெலுங்கு மொழி.

கர்நாடகா- கன்னட மொழி.

மகாராஷ்டிரா- மராத்தி மொழி.

குஜராத்- குஜராத்தி மொழி.

பஞ்சாப்- பஞ்சாபி மொழி.

ராஜஸ்தான்- ராஜஸ்தானி, மார்வாரி, மேவாரி மொழிகள்.

ஹரியானா-

ஹரியானி மொழி.

இமாசலப்பிரதேசம்-

மஹாசு பஹாரி, மண்டேலி,

காங்கிரி, பிலாஸ்புரி, சாம்பேலி மொழிகள்.

ஜம்மு-காஷ்மீர்- காஷ்மீரி, டோக்ரி, பாடி, லடாக்கி மொழிகள்.

உத்தர்காண்ட்-

கடுவாலி, குமோனி மொழிகள்.

உத்திரப்பிரதேசம்- பிரஸ்பாஷா, கரிபோலி, அவதி, கன்னோஜி,போஜ்புரி, பந்தேலி, பகேலி மொழிகள்.

பீஹார்- போஜ்புரி, மைதிலி மொழிகள்.

ஜார்கண்ட்- சந்தாலி மொழி.

சத்தீஸ்கர்- கோர்பா மொழி.

மத்தியப் பிரதேசம்- மால்வி,நிமதி, பகேலி மொழிகள்.

மேற்கு வங்கம்- வங்க மொழி.

ஒடிசா- ஒரியா மொழி.

வட கிழக்கு மாநிலங்கள்-

அசாமி,

போடோ காரோ, தாமோங், நேபாளி, பங்காளி, காசி, கொக்பராக், மணிப்பூரி மொழிகள்.

இதில் உன் ஹிந்தி யாருக்குத்

தாய் மொழி?

யாருக்குமே

தாய் மொழியாக இல்லாத ஒரு மொழியை...

சுய தன்மையற்ற ஒரு கலப்பட மொழியை...

எந்த விதமான இலக்கண, இலக்கிய பின்புலம் இல்லாத ஒரு அரைகுறை மொழியை...

இந்தியாவின்

பொது மொழியாக

ஏற்றுக் கொள்ள வேண்டிய அவசியம் என்ன?

🍾🥂🍸

*Honest Malayali*😝

Mathew Kutty from Kottayam woke up one morning deeply repentant after a bitter fight with his wife the previous night.

He noticed with dismay the Crate of Brandy Bottles that had caused the fight.

He took the Crate outside and started smashing the Empty Bottles one by one onto the wall.

He smashed the first bottle swearing, *"You are the reason I fight with my wife"*.

He smashed the second bottle, *"You are the reason I don't love my children.".*

He smashed the third bottle, *"You are the reason I don't have a decent job"*.

When he took the Fourth bottle, he realized that the bottle was still *Sealed and Full*.

He hesitated for a moment and said *"You stand aside, I know you were not involved."*

Avan, Aval Adhu 250

The repressed memory is like a noisy intruder being thrown out of the concert hall. You can throw him out, but he will bang on the door and continue to disturb the concert. The analyst opens the door and says, If you promise to behave yourself, you can come back in.

Ravi Kumar closed his eyes and meditated on the question that Gayatri had just asked and even though it had evoked a smile from him, he felt very different inside his mind. His closed eyelids shut out the sights of the outside world and at the same time shut out to others his inside sight for he knew very well that eyes are truly windows to the soul and somehow manage to reveal to others what the host is thinking or worse feeling.

Inside his mind, the pleasant surprise that he had felt upon hearing Gayatri's question concerning Lord Ram and Vali now slowly began to fill his mind with dread and he felt the familiar kind of pain that one feels when one loses someone whom they had loved dearly.

It might sound a bit morbid, cruel and cold-hearted when I tell you that the nature of grief I feel when a young person dies when compared to the passing of an older person and by that I mean one who has crossed seventy years of age. In the same vein, a young person is someone who has not crossed 40 years of existence on this planet.

When I hear the news about old people who have passed on, I go in my head, ' God rest his soul in eternal peace. I hope he or she did not suffer too much before moving on.'

But, when I hear about the death of a young person or read about it in the papers, I feel a different sort of pain and I go in my head, ' Sad. very sad. So many years left to live and to do. But gone too soon.'

I did not understand death when I was a kid and I confess that I still do not understand it now even though I am a middle-aged man.

Death means closure. Death is final and after the pain and sorrow, one invariably over time steps onto the path of hapless resignation or just resigns saying, ' One day I too will be no more. Death comes to all of us in the end.'

Death is also knowing for certain that the person is no more. But, not knowing. OMG! How do I or how is it even possible to encapsulate in mere words the thoughts, the emotion, the pain, the grief that a person or persons feel when someone they love dearly goes missing and is never heard of again?

I apologise for saying it again and again but death and a dead body means, closure. Done.

But what closure will parents and their families get when their child has been kidnapped and is never seen again?

No closure but for the promise from life that guarantees you a life of unbearable pain and misery.

Ravi knew that Madhu was alive and was living somewhere in Mumbai. That was the only thing he knew for certain for he also knew for certain that he would have felt it in his soul if something terrible had happened to her. For all intents and purposes, Ravi was a very practical person and was not given to silly sentiments or wallowing in self-pity. But deep in his heart, he knew that he still loved Madhu and would continue to love her until his final breath. Maybe, it was this love, this fire that burnt for her in his soul, that had given him the energy to go on and at the same time had given him the strength to remain a bachelor all these years.

After the monumental events that had taken place during Meenakshi's marriage, not a week passed by without his parents showing him photos of women that they felt were suitable for him. Almost all of them were highly educated and qualified and reasonably good-looking. Some of them were in fact downright very beautiful and looked like they could have been in the movies if they had desired that. But all that was for nought.

' Thank you but no thank you. I am certain that all these women will make for great life partners, for someone else but certainly not for me. If in the worst-case scenario, if, I did change my mind and agreed to marry one of these ladies, I am sure that their life will soon become hell and before long we will be heading to the courts for a divorce. Is that what both of you want for me and for your daughter-in-law? Ravi had asked his parents and that was that.

The moment Ravi had seen Madhurima in school he had felt different and then the moment he had looked into her eyes he had known for sure that he would never be able to look at another woman let alone another person in the same way and feel the same that he felt when he saw her.

He remembered that time, that moment when Madhu had asked him why he loved her and asked him to explain his feelings for her.

Ravi blushed and whispered, ' I will try Madhu but I doubt if words can explain or capture what I feel when I see you and am with you.'

That had been the moment when she had first kissed him. It was not even a kiss but more of an affectionate peck on his cheek and she had whispered in her strong Bengali accented English, ' Priyatama, Jaanu, I will understand ( ami bujhate habe).'

Ravi had looked into her beautiful, big and soft brown eyes that appeared like two oceans separated by her nose and brow and had told her and drowned himself in her.

' Madhu, when I am with you, I feel complete. I don't know why or how to better explain it but I know I feel a kind of peace. I feel immensely strong and immortal when I am sitting next to you. My mind is clear and sans any questions.'

Madhu had laughed and her laughter sounded like the tinkling of small bells and with a smile that rivalled the sun in the sky, she had said, ' You and without questions. Ravi Ji, you question everyone and everything. Your need, to learn more is insatiable and well-known and I bet even God will run for his life the moment you begin asking him questions.'

' Correct, Madhu. But all that and every other need and thoughts just vanish the moment I think of you and the moment I say your name. It's as if we were meant to be with each other and have travelled a long time to be with each other.'

That had been the moment when she had whispered for the first time, ' Jaanu ' and had kissed him.

It was not just a kiss but more of her offering her lips, her open mouth to him and so they had kissed as if their very lives depended on it. They kissed like lovers who know that it is their last kiss and try to make the most of the moment. It was not just their mouths that fused together but their very souls fused and became one and their hearts joined and sang and danced in a new rhythm. A rhythm of love.

If love was classified as a disease then it can be identified by several symptoms that the patient ( the person or persons who are in love or just feel love) might exhibit. Some of the most easily recognizable ones are " cant eat, cant sleep, cant concentrate, cant work normally, cant think normally " for the one in love is constantly thinking about the person he or she is in love with.

Ravi had read all this and more as he had researched the topic of love and to confirm for himself if what he felt was real love or just a high school crush that comes with age and hormones.

All his doubts were cleared the moment she kissed him and he tasted the sweetness of her mouth and he breathed in the essence of her soul.

Madhuopened her eyes feeling the wetness on her cheeks, nose and also as it trickled into her mouth and quickly moving back she looked at him with her large, beautiful eyes full of alarm and fear and had asked, ' Jaanu, why are you crying?'

Ravi smiling through the tears that were more soothing than stinging with their salt said, ' I felt overwhelmed and I guess my body not knowing what else to do has done what it knows best and which are tears.'

With wonder and curiosity in her big brown eyes, she tentatively asked, ' Overwhelmed. By what?'

' Overwhelmed by your kiss, the taste of your mouth, the nearness of you and finally getting the answer to the question that I have been tormenting myself with all these months. Rather from the moment I saw you walk into our class.'

Ravi's heart froze and then began to beat faster as Madhu did that thing that was so fascinating and captivating about her. She puffed up her right cheek with air and blew at the strands of hair that had fallen on her lips and at the same time their upper bodies were irritating her eye and cheek.

Ravi's eyes saw but his mind slowed the moment and he saw her purse, puff her beautiful large lips and blow at the curls of hair and saw how they lifted themselves startled by the sudden gust of air that had been launched at them.

' Jaanu, Overwhelmed, tormenting questions and answers? Ami bujhate parachi na? I don't understand you.'

Ravi reached for his handkerchief and taking it out was about to wipe his face when Madhu had stopped him and whispered shyly, ' Please let me ' and proceeded to slowly kiss his face, his eyes, his cheeks and in the process used her lips to remove the tears that lay wet in their twin tracks.

' Even your tears belong to me, not to this universe. You shed them for me and so I am its owner like I am the owner of your soul and your every breath.'

She smiled her beautiful all-encompassing smile that reverberated in her lips, eyes and all over her body and Ravi had thought, ' this is no mere woman or a mere mortal. This is an angel, a goddess who has been sent down to save me and show me what all love can do.'

' Jaanu, Ravi ' she had shaken him out of his beautiful daydream of a poem and had asked him to explain himself and the reason for his tears.

' Madhu, it has been nearly three years since your arrival here to our school and also into my life. I know what I am about to say might sound familiarly tedious and commonplace. But I will say it anyway.'

Her eyes opened wider and then slowly shrank changing size to express curiosity and Ravi could not help but marvel at the way her eyes expressed so little and o much at the same time.

' I knew what you meant to me the moment I saw you. I knew it was that common thing called love that everybody feels and should feel and I asked myself the same thing. Is it love? Am I feeling love for Madhu? If it is love then is it just a temporary and shortlived crush or more?'

Seeing him fall silent, ' And?'

' It is love but something more beautiful than that. I knew it the moment we kissed and the very moment my question was answered. What I feel for you is something special and eternal and at the same time very familiar.'

' Familiar. Compared to what, Jaanu?'

Ravi bent his head unable to look at her while he poured his heart out and said, ' I feel the same comfort, peace and love that I feel when I am with my parents. I feel the same and more than when I am with my best friends. But more than anything, I feel familiar with you and its as if I have known you all my life and in all my early lives.'

Madhu laid her head on his chest and as his arms closed around her to imprison her in his love, she asked, ' How can you know all this and feel all this?'

Ravi had kissed her head and said, ' ask me this after ten years and after we have been married and after we have become parents to half a dozen sweet little Madhu's and I will give you my answer then.'

From the safety and sanctity of his arms, she had looked up at him with her big brown eyes brimming with happy tears and Ravi had bent his head and covered her mouth with his and they had kissed for a long time.

It felt as if he had relived his entire life but his watch told him that it had been just a few minutes and Ravi lifted his head and looked at Gayatri and then she did what she had done.

Gayatri puffed her right cheek and blew angrily at the hair that had dared to disturb her and had dared to come between her and Ravi.

His heart quickened its pace seeing Gayatri do the same thing as Madhu had done and began to speak.

' My answer to your question is yes. The killing of Vali by Lord Ram was totally justified.'

His answer immediately evoked loud protests from both Partha and Daksha but none from Gayatri.

' Dei, what kind of answer is this? I expected better from my friend who I think is a real hero. How can you of all people justify a killing that was done from hiding?'

Daksha protested too but she did it sans emotion and without appealing to Ravi's emotions and friendship.

' Master sir, I am surprised both by your answer and which happens to be your opinion. You are a well-read and highly intelligent person, and yet you are willing to take this stand and justify the murder of a brave warrior who was fighting another warrior and had his back turned to Lord Ram who launched the fatal arrow that killed him.'

Ravi nodded, ' I will explain my stand to both of you later but right now my priority is Gayatri and her doubts in this matter.'

' Okay then, Ravi. Go on and answer the question in detail and we will talk about the rest later' Gayatri said and Ravi did exactly that and proceeded to shake and break the foundations of their newfound love.

It was like Madhu had suddenly inhabited Ravi and who was echoing the exact words that she had used to explain to her late father why Lord Ram was justified in killing Vali and just as he had been made to realize his wrong, Ravi made them all realize the error of their thoughts. As Ravi and as Madhu in one body and as one spirit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzP9ha5bLJI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQ5PY0QVac0

Another good old one.

By mistake his Phone rang in Church during prayers...

The Priest scolded him ...

After prayers, the congregation admonished him for interrupting the silence.

His wife lectured him on his carelessness until they got home.

One could see the shame, embarrassment n humiliation on his face !!

*He has never stepped into the Church ever again.*

That evening, he went to a bar ...

He was still nervous n unsure.

By mistake he spilled his drink on the table.

The waiter apologized, gave him a napkin to clean himself up.

The janitor mopped the floor.

The female manager offered him a complimentary drink.

The bar girl gave him a hug n said,

"Don't worry man. Who doesn't make mistakes ?"

*_He has never stopped going to that bar since then_*

*Management Lesson"*

*_"You can make a difference by the way you treat people,_*

*_especially when they make mistakes !!."_*

Stay Happy....

😃😃