Mum and I went to Mumbai and shifted the things to Pune. Actually, Mum did all the work while I stood like a birthday girl watching over the preparations being made for the party. I had no idea shifting would be such a tough job. I looked naive. From instructing the load lifters, the truck driver and negotiating the deal with the transport agent, mum was in total control of the things that were happening. She looked like a leader in tough situations. What a woman! I thought for myself.
We successfully shifted our things to Pune. It did not take a long while though. Within a week mum managed to convert the house into our beautiful home. The place was the same but it felt like home in Pune for the first time. I realised that a house is not what is important it is the people who matter the most.
I loved the backyard. And the sunset was marvellous. It was away from the clutter of busy mechanical life. This place was almost at the outskirts of Pune near my hostel. We could not have asked for a calmer and safer place for us to live in. It was like the much awaited break to our busy materialistic lifestyle that we were trapped into. And staying with mum in such a beautiful place was nothing less than heaven.
Watching mum do her work itself was like a motivation pill for me. I was undoubtedly happy. Having her handmade delicious Idlis and pastas, relaxing with mum over the evening tea and spending the nights with the crickets, the year just cruised past.
It was the most important thing in my life at that moment. It was my year 12 board exams. Whenever a doubt rose in my mind about my capabilities, mum just said one thing, “Be confident, no matter what stands before you.” It was my hard work and my confidence that I came up with flying colours in my exams. And I definitely trust those words even today.
Time glided away. After seeing mum work on animation ever since I recall my initial memories, I wanted to have a piece of it. I wanted to experience firsthand what it is like to create a whole character out of nothing. I had this deep interest building up within me and it was time to unleash it.
I joined an Arts college. I studied the traditional techniques for arts and gradually had mature understanding of the intricate, delicate and the pure beauty of the subject. I got increasingly passionate about it.
I made lots of friends in college and often brought them home. And one of my best friends was Suhaas.
He would say, “Even though art seems to be a matter of heart, the best master pieces are made at the subconscious state of mind. It is the language of the soul.” And I wondered, how else could art be defined in a better way.
He helped me develop a deep bonding with nature and animals which was unnoticed but a very crucial aspect of every form of art. Most of the time we worked on projects together. We had a great time at home with mum. She had an instant rapport with Suhaas and she definitely loved the vibes of the youth.
Our work frequently flashed on the college notice board and so did our close friendship create rumours in the college premises. But none of it managed to deter our focus in our aim. We strived for the best and best we did received. I was awarded the best outgoing student of the year and Suhaas grabbed the best project of the year award.
I completed my diploma in animation along with my fine arts degree. I shared all my work with mum and considered her valuable suggestions. I clearly remember the nights when I spent long hours working on my project and mum would just come in and sit in the room speaking nothing, just looking at me and smiling as though she is proud of her grown up daughter.
Three years passed and I was in the final year. Those were some of the finest days I ever had in my life and a huge credit goes to mum.
Everything seemed like present until the morning sunlight hit my face. I felt as if I was still in Pune!
As always I had kept the blinds open. I love the early morning glowing sunrays. The golden rays create an illusion of a fresh start even though life is just a continuation; there is neither a beginning nor an end to it. Just like today.
As I opened the window, the fresh morning breeze refreshed me and I disillusioned myself into the present. It had been raining all night. The window plane was damp and there were numerous puddles randomly spread over the backyard. The smell from the soil was unbeatable even better than those expensive perfumes. I took a deep breath and decided to take a plunge into the day I have been looking forward to the most since the past few months.
After the thousands of memories creating a riot in my head all over the night, I looked forward to get an insight further into mum’s life before I became a part of her life.
I walked out of my room. Mum was taking bath. It was already 6:45am. Sundays are no exceptions to her; she woke up early as usual. I went back to my room and got freshened up. I did yoga for a while, had my bath. I did all the routine stuff but nothing seemed to be normal. Some kind of nasty silence still persisted.
It was breakfast time. And all the thoughts were wandering in my mind like the goats grazing in the grasslands. Mum placed the breakfast on the table one by one. She did not make any eye contact with me since morning.
I was watching her set the dining table, pretending to clean the living room. I was actually waiting for mum to start the breakfast so that I could break the long silence.
She served the breakfast for me on the plate and went and stood near the window staring outside. My heart sank. She looked disturbed. I hoped to see her fresh and happy this morning but...
I waited at the breakfast table but she did not move an inch. The light passed through her hair. It felt like the almighty was giving her the power to overcome the situation.
She should speak, I thought for myself. I got up from the table and stood besides mum.
It was a nice feeling to be besides mum after such a long night. I bend forward to make an eye contact. Mom quickly turned and looked straight into my eyes. I felt a huge sigh of relief. She gave me a smile for the first time since yesterday evening.
I smiled back to let mum know that I was happy to see her smiling.
“Mum, shall we have our breakfast?” I asked.
“Sure dear.” Mum replied gently.
We went towards the table and were about to start with the breakfast by then the doorbell rang.
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