A journey full of perplexion (Part-2)

Sheila Rawat was a single mother in the tiny, backward village situated in the laps of mountains in the Himachal Pradesh. She was a school teacher in the primary school of her village. Albeit she was a teacher; she could think only those clichéd occupations as something big, i.e.: doctor, engineer or a government job. Aryan too had no idea of other career options until he went to Shimla, in the boarding. His maa had kept him in a boarding school for his better education and bright future.

Sheila used to wait for the vacations desperately. Every coming vacation; Aryan would come back home. He would talk about everything with his maa. About his new friends, his studies, his school, Shimla, and everything. No matter how jaded Sheila would feel; her frenetic son would replenish her energy and happiness. She was satisfied with her decision, her brave decision of putting her only son in a boarding, miles apart where there was nobody whom they could call theirs. 

The vacations would end within couple of weeks and Aryan would bid adieu; her lone life would get started again. Thankfully she had a small farm where she had planted some plants of different kinds of fruits and flowers. She was passing her somber days keeping herself busy, gardening, visiting neighbors, talking to friends, talking to plants. But at the end of the day, every night her pillows would get wet. Still she would accumulate all the courage and with every rising sun; she would get back to the work.

There in Shimla, Aryan was shining like a star. He was so eloquent in his studies and had managed to get first rank every year. And in his boards; he had topped the district and got a scholarship. Nobody in the entire village had studied this much. Obviously Aryan was a center of attraction for the villagers. Mukhiya (headman) of the village distributed sweets in each of the house, and his maa was now a very proud mother.

Nobody knew that time would fly so fast. It had been fifteen years since Sheila and Aryan were living away. Aryan had crossed his adolescence now.

 

To be continued...