He Found Salvation

He saw a light shining at the far end. The dark tunnel seemed to go on and on for ages. He was alone; his intuition told him that if he went towards this invisible force that was pulling him, he would not return back. Part of him was curious, what if he didn’t have to come back to his harsh, cruel world, and part of him was scared. All that he had even wanted was to be happy, maybe for a little while, just a little while, but all that he ever got was deceit, failure, loneliness and his only friend was solitude.

He was fading fast, like the wind that blows away the blame of burning candle. As his veins throbbed faster, and blood drained away from his skin, he felt something. Was somebody there, was it Meg? He focused his eyes, his vacant brown eyes, he saw nothing. Everything was a blur. All he heard was a busy rushing noise, and some people talking…

‘Andrew, father wants you inside his room now’

‘Yes mother’

‘Andrew, tomorrow for Howard medical school’

‘But dad… oh, father, I don’t want to join the medical college. I want to become a geologist’

 The next day he was at Howard, studying medicine. Silence…

“Nurse, the situation is getting critical”

Sweat poured down his face. His limpid eyes vividly showed the horror and fear in them.

“Andrew, you won’t whisper the word about this to anyone will you son?”

‘No father, I … swear I won’t. Please don’t hurt me’

‘Good if you do, it won’t take me long to slit your throat. You are a disgusting pathetic twenty-year-old with the brain of the stupid miserable eight-year-old brat and look know that people don’t believe anything a fool like say. Do they now?

‘ No… no father, I promise I won’t tell anyone father… don’t …donot lock me in the closet….. Father’

He remembered that the next day he had cried himself to sleep when he saw the picture of the mother’s dead body in front of the newspaper.

“Oh, doctor look. I think he is getting better.”

He breathed in the fresh cool air. He had never been so happy. As the coffin was buried he laughed out loud, a real hearty laughter after 25 long years. It created a big hullaballoo at the funeral and outraged angry stares met his broad smile. His father was dead.

“Nurse, look like he will make it!”

Jason had introduced him to Meg. She wasn’t pretty. She was quite an unusual girl with a weird hairdo. They become good friends and she quickly understood him. She didn’t listen for the sake of listening. She listened because she truly cared. She was a nice person and he finally had someone whom he could call the friend. But their friendship didn’t last long. After two weeks, Meg died in car crash. Once more he was alone, left in his cocoon of darkness.

“Doctor, the heart beats are failing.”

Why him, why did he have to run away from his terrifying past, why did he dread the present, and why did his unknown future hunt him? Everyone nauseating moment, every breath he took tortured him. His visions of his childhood tormented him, and nightmares lingered in every shadow. He was despised and ignored. His whole neighborhood loathed and feared him after he nearly murdered a woman beating her child. Some men had beaten him up and saved her life. Ha had almost served her right hand.

He didn’t know what he wanted from himself but he knew he wanted salvation. How could he get it? He would do anything for it. That night he wrestled with his emotion behind closed doors and enclosed cold walls. The menacing cries of the hounds, the mocking laughter of people around him ate his less and same mind. The tornado of wild crazy thoughts left him defeated. He picked up a knife and stabbed himself in the stomach. He groveled and cried in anguish, he cried for all those years that had passed in fear, indescribable pain, and utter loneliness. Steel like coldness engulfed him, he lost consciousness.

The machine beeped louder and signaling the emergency. Tensions mounted in the operating room, nobody spoke. A tear trickled down his face, he had finally found salvation. Andrew Hawkins was dead.

   

The Tortured Birthday

“That’s totally gnarly!” Exclaimed Joe.“ I learned to share such ghostly story from my wife,” said the old man and boasted. “I’m already getting late for my special birthday celebration,” said Joe to the old man. Then old man suggested Joe go home soon. Joe collected all the scattered material and put in his bag. Joe and the Old man turned their Pecs off. The old man also planned to go, at the same time, Joe planned to go. But their homes were in a different direction.

Joe went towards garage to find his descent car. But he was suffering from mental tension. He thought that his wife would come to receive him at his office when Joe would be travelling to his home. And it would be really problematic. It was one hours late than usual leaving time. He started driving car listening to classical music. His mind changed at once. Now he started reckoning himself as a flying bird in the blue free sky. But the current time was already 9 PM and it would take at least one hour to reach home. And the way to the home was through a dense forest. Time passed swiftly and he was driving through the forest. The thundering sound from the sky warned Joe about bad and critical climate in his surroundings. He had a little fear about those ghostly stories recited by old men in that same forest. The cool breeze was trying to change into fierce wind.

After some time, all his happiness and fear was directly captured by a sudden unexpected event. His car stopped in the middle of that great forest and he had about 6 km to walk through. He watched all those engines of his car and was totally unsuccessful in repairing that. So, he thought of running all the way home. Light and wind were all there to oppose him. There was a little light of the car which left a minute ago. He then saw a speedy vehicle coming from the opposite direction. He thought of asking a lift but again he was too late and unsuccessful in doing so.

After a little while, he noticed women shouting at him. She was in the white dress and appeared like a ghost from far. Thinking her an evil spirit roaming in that forest, he started running.

He ran and ran until he broke his spectacles. Then his eyes were a little blurred and his power of vision was decreased. The woman was approaching nearer and nearer to him. He again looked back to her and saw that she was carrying a long and mighty sword. But he didn’t know that his eyesight has done a great mistake.

When he ran for about one hour, he reached his own home. Joe entered through the door and locked it. He cried,” Ciara, where are you?”  He heard no answer from his wife and thought that she is already asleep. He planned to kill that coming lady. His torture mind helped him to find a pistol in an open almirah. He directly fired to that lady through the window. The bullet hit her stomach and she fell down in a helpless way. Joe thought of seeing that helpless ghostly lady. Fearing a little, he stepped up towards the vacant body. He saw blood spurting out from her stomach. Just when he saw the face of that lady that was totally faces of Ciara. A birthday present (gift) was lying aside her. He discovered a magnificent ring inside it. His eyes were full of tears. He just couldn’t tolerate that. Now, he has only one alternative left for making his heart only one alternative left for making his heart satisfied and still.

That was how Joe celebrated his last birthday.

The Reasons...

There was a college boy name Mohan. He always had nightmares about a girl. The nightmare had made his personality different. After having the nightmare, his behaviors got changed. In his dream, he always saw a girl. She was always in the same dress. Her face and smile hunted Mohan every night.  A blank shadow would be chasing her. The girl would be shouting for help. She would be calling his name. Suddenly when she reached near a Peepal tree, the shadow would kill her on the same tree. But the dead girl‘s hunting eyes would be staring Mohan.

He often told his friends about his nightmare that is happening in his dream. His friends always tried to make him comfortable by saying the nightmare might be the cause of tension of study. His friends decided to take him to the village (in the home of one of his friend) in order to refresh his mind.

In the summer vacation, Mohan and his friends went to the village. Mohan looked relieved after reaching his friend’s house. The next day, they managed to go the jungle near the village. While they were walking through the jungle, Mohan found the road quite known. He told his friends through he was joking because Mohan had never been to that place before.

After a few hours, they were near to large Peepal tree in the heart of the forest. There was a cloth in the branch of the tree. Then, Mohan felt his heart heavy. He soon fainted. When he opens his eye he saw his friend around him in the house. His friend asked him about the trance incident. Mohan with his nervous voice and fearful stated “you know...The peepal tree... it’s the same one that I saw in my dream… and the cloth... The cloth…the cloth... which was laying on its branch… it is the same cloth that the girl in my dream wears”. This made his friends shocked. They suggested Mohan take rest.

At the night the same nightmare again hunted him in his dream, he heard the knowing sound on the door of their room. He woke up with a great fear sweat was trickling from his face. He found his friends asleep.

Suddenly, he looked at the door, someone… or something… was really knocking at the door. He could hear his heart beating clearly and loudly. He slowly went near to the door.

There was no knock then. He slowly opened the door. There was on one. He looked all around but found no one suddenly, his eyes fell on a shadow some distant further.

He knew something was wrong. He felt he has to after the shadow. He caught the torch and ran after the shadow. His eye felt sleepy but his leg was taking him somewhere.

When he opened his eye, he found himself standing near the peepal tree. He rubbed his eye to make sure he was dreaming or not but… It was not the dream in fact… was really there. He felt dumb. Though the moon was not in the sky, he could figure out the same girl whom he used to see in his dream, hanging on the tree. He feared to show his torch light in the face of the girl. But he found something was changing there. The girl was catching the paper when he showed the light towards her hand, the paper felt down. He picked up the paper in the fear and unfolded it.

On the paper there was written something in a very strange handwriting,”I told you many times I cried … but you never helped me… I begged for my life but you…less… You are the reason for my death. ”

Mohan felt as if he was falling down from a cliff. He remembered… wait... Mohan didn’t see the second shadow… that was the shadow…? Was, the shadows himself… had he really killed the girl…? He looked up. The girl, she was dead but her eyes were same haunting eyes which were staring him.

  

Dream or Reality

“Dipendra get up”, my mother shouted.

“Okay, mom”, I spoke in my sleepy voice.

After sometimes I got downstairs being fresh.

“Happy Birthday to you , Happy Birthday to you , Happy Birthday to you , Happy Birthday to you dear, Dipendra …..”,all my family member sang in the same rhythm.

“Wow! What a surprise and me fool forgot my own birthday.” I said in rather a surprise voice. In the very day, I received a lot of birthday wishes, gifts, sweets and much more.

Now, I am in my room having a look at all the things around me. I have everything like the laptop, videos games, warm clothes, greeting cards and all those sorts of things. I have got the chance to study in one of the best school of the valley. Rather than anything I have the best, friendly and happiest family in the world.

Suddenly, I feel extreme cold as if the chilling wind has passed by me. And slowly, I see those things moving further and further from me. This serve cold of Magh brings me back to footpath of Kathmandu valley, half wet due to morning dew. And, the incident was just a dream which can never be true as my life is totally in different condition.

Now, in reality, I am just a street child whose means of living is just a long thin rod, a worm out sack. My days pass with collecting plastics, reusable things and many such sorts of things.

Suddenly, my heart feels, “Oh!  God. It has already been three years, I have been to Kathmandu.”

Then my mind goes to flashback, before three years:………

Really I was very happy in those times. My family lived in the hillside village of Khotang. I think I had the happiest family in the village. My father used to work in an office at district headquarters, whereas, my mother was a housewife. I and my younger sister used to study in the primary school near the village.

It was the rainy season, our school was closed. So, during that holiday when I and my sister returns from maternal uncles’ home after five days, we found our village had been suffered by the landslide due to heavy rainfall, the night before. When we heard this, we rushed to our home and found piles of eroded soil and rocks in the place where our house was. Our heart nearly stopped beating when we thought about our parents.

Suddenly someone hugged us from behind. He was our father, and mother was standing at back, sobbing. Fortunately, our father and mother have managed to escape when the landslide occurred.

There was a little smile in ours face but it couldn’t last longer because we lost our house, land, property everything’s and then we came under the poverty line. Then after, our life was too hard. Father continued with his job but only his income was not sufficient so my mother to begins working in other’s home. I could not see the poor condition of my family, so, I too thought to do something. I had that, it was easy to work and earn money in Kathmandu. So, one day I left my family with some friends and headed to Kathmandu.

But Kathmandu was the different world. The life was harder or difficult. There was no job and money in Kathmandu. As a result, I got only pain, sorrow, and unlimited problems. All my friends were departed. After then, my friends, I mean my only means of living were long thin rod and worm out the sack. The life becomes very miserable. I couldn’t return at the home in that condition………..

“Dipendra, oh! Dipendra.” These words call me once again after three years, to the present reality. It is Ramesh who called me. Ramesh too has the similar living as mine.

When I turn towards him, he smiles as he always does. His glooming face seems to tell, “Dipendra doesn't worry. Now we are moving through sorrowful time. But the day will come when the sun will rise with our happiness and bright future. But today we should start our daily business, I mean collecting…………… ”