Rain

I gazed out of the window and saw droplets of water dripping from the roof of the window. May be the water tank was full. My room was on the second floor of the three floor apartment. It was an old apartment and no one ever tried to improvise it by at least putting a little white wash on its walls. People simply came and went, there were people who shifted within a few days. I felt I was the only one to stay here so long say an year. There was a gust of wind all of a sudden and thick clouds, black clouds started coveringthe skies and soon engulfed the mighty burning sphere into their enormous fathoms.There was a lightning and a distant rumble that slowly approached and burst on the top ofthe apartment. A cold breeze began to blow, making my face turn white. I closed thewindow and at the very moment the skies poured the rain.Water began to sprout from the gaps of the window doors. A steady stream of water ranfrom the window, through the wall racing towards my bed.I took a piece of old cloth and wiped the stream and clogged the gap with it. A while later the cloth got soaked with the water and I took it and wrung it squeezing all the water intoa little bucketI gazed out of the window leaving the water-stream account to observe what was goingoutside. People where running helter shelter some with umbrellas, some with books above their heads and some with their bags. My eyes fell on a girl, a young girl standing on the pavement with a disheveled look, with her teeth chattering and longing for someone’s help, in this heavy inadvertent rain. The water was flowing with full force creating ripples and froth.She stood looking left and right for a while and began to walk as if in a trance. I remembered somethingI remembered something. But my memory couldn’t recall. Something was wrong. At least something was about togo wrong. Then I recalled the man hole. I had seen a group of workers pumping out thesewage water the day before and had left the door open. Now in this turbulent current ofwater I wasn’t visible …. And the girl was nearing it slowly, unconsciously unaware ofthe impending danger, whatever her problem was.I rushed out of my room, descending the stairs with full speed, I tripped over and fellrolling downstairs, almost breaking my arm, but I didn’t care. The pain seemed nothing compared to the plight of the girl.I opened the gates and ran into the rain leaving a dismayed watchman behind. I ran and ran as fast as my legs could carry. And the girl took one step more… the final step to go… and she fell in ..Only to be caught by her shoulders. I held them firmly surprised by her weight and pulledher out.She screamed.. but no one came near. Nobody seemed to be caring.She looked at me and burst into sobs and pressed her head on my chest. I hugged hertightly, comforting her and relinquishing all her worries.

The Old woman and the grace

The evening sun rays spread slowly over the buildings turning everything into light orange as I stood gazing on the terrace. I glanced towards the foot steps of the opposite building putting my hands on to the parapet wall. I could see the old woman sitting on alittle stone laid on the front.

Beside her was an ironing shop with a woman at work without looking at the old woman. The woman had millions of wrinkles all over her face and her skin had completelydrooped. Her eyes lost their life and her cheeks sullen. Her hair looked like a matted dry grass fully white. She wore a torn sari full of dirt that came by the dust that flew when the iron woman sometimes swept.The woman seemed to be waiting for the doors to open, to see her wretched sons, who had reimbursed her help by throwing her out of her own house, and not even providing a morsel to eat.The doors opened and after a while a man came out wearing a striped lungi and a vest.His wife followed him from the back."Didn’t you go away? How many time times have I told you not to sit in front of my house!" and he started his foul mouth as usual. His wife joined him and they jointly aggrieved her.
It was getting dark. I was still on the terrace. A cold breeze blew touching my face. I closed my eyes. When will she be shown grace?A warm hand touched my back. I looked back and saw my wife with her beautiful eyes looking straight into mine boldly. "Again you are
thinking about the woman?""Yes dear.." I said putting my hand over her shoulders. I could feel the warmth despite the cold current of the wind. "I am wondering when
she will be granted grace.""She surely will.." she said, "What you are seeing is just an example, I
am watching the whole scene when you go to office.. Come dear.. we have to do some
work at our house."
"I think we can lend a helping hand.." I said while we both descended the stairs.
"I tried to give her rice but she didn’t take it saying that she had a son
who would take care of.." Said my wife .
"The people.." I muttered.
* * *

I was ruffling my documents to verify them while my wife sat opposite to me waiting forme to finish when there was a commotion all of a sudden. We both got up and went to the corridor. A group of people gathered around. I could see the old woman lying in the centre. Strangly no one cared about here when alive but people were swarming around like bees now.

At last she was granted her grance I felt.