Splash!
My feet were full of sluggish mud when I stepped into a narrow gap
between the rocks. This was totally a new escapade for me. I wouldn’t
ever forget this in life.
Two
days ago, my final graduation examination ended and I was really
frustrated when people questioned me again and again for my next
decision in life. “Are you placed in a good company? What are
you deciding for the future?” This was just too much when one
day I howled at my mom dad to avoid me taking to the family
get-together. Watching the way I yelled, my elder brother took a
decision.
“Pranali!
Surprise! Because you have just finished your studies I have booked a
room for a short holiday in Deolali, a small town near Nashik, in
Maharashtra (India). From Mumbai (India), we can travel for about 4
hours and you can relax for the next few days.”
“Thanks,
bro! I really needed this. When do we leave? Does mom dad know about
this?” I was slackened for a moment.
“Yes!
In fact, they themselves booked us a room there. We leave the day
after tomorrow.”
Two
days later:
I
was waving my hands in the wind that gushed through the car my
brother was driving. Lush fields with veggies freshly grown on them
and the tall trees in the complete route made a cool atmosphere. I
was having thoughts about the place being a first time visitor. How
will it be? With a resident of a crowded city, spending a weekend in
a green sparsely populated village or town feels stress relieving.
We
reached and unloaded ourselves at the booked room. People had made a
property investment there and they usually provided their flats on
rent to people who visited there for weekends. “Sis! You
freshen up and we will explore the place around.”
We
started roaming to see the famous spots there. There was a huge
park-like place. It had partitions like a sitting area having benches
under the trees, a walking area with many plants and paved paths to
walk, a play area for children and more.
“Look
there! Let's trek!” My brother saw the stairs towards the
mountain out of sight and forced me to go with him.
This
was the point where an unforeseen journey began! We climbed the
stairs and going up with normal speed we reached a point where the
stairs weren’t yet constructed and there was a diversion of
unpaved paths. Maybe the stairs today are paved but back then, we
took the path towards a forest. We walked for about 15 minutes and we
were far from the point where we started the journey. Speaking about
general topics within ourselves, we almost lost track. We even lost
the raw way which might have given us any direction. There were
bushes and grass all around. Tall trees covered the sky and we looked
at each other with a bewildered look.
“Bro!
We are lost. What do we do now?” I was quiet now in
uncertainty.
“Wait!
Don’t worry. We will find a way out. Let’s keep walking
toward the upper side.” My brother tried to calm me down.
The
region wasn’t a predictable one. We walked a little further and
found ourselves on a plateau-like surface. The land was covered with
shrubs but there was no upper side. Moving my feet in my bombshell
anxiety, my feet slipped between rocks nearby which covered a puddle
of sluggish mud. Splash! “Sis! Careful.” Bro held my hand
to help me stand stable without tripping
“Bro!
There’s water nearby.” We were now searching for some
clues to find a way back to the town. “This is unbelievable! I
won’t ever forget this trip in life.” I laughed. Bro
smiled back. He was tensed about returning. The clouds above were
turning dark.
Walking
to the edge of the plateau, we saw an abandoned wooden house from
far. “Bro, there might be someone here who can help us out.”
I started moving fast towards the desolated house.
“Sis!
No! We can’t trust everyone. This is a military area, so we
aren’t sure who might he be. This place is a small town, they
might be some tribal people.” Bro quickly blocked my way with
his hands and gestured me to stay behind him.
We
reached and stood at a distance. There was no one and the place
didn’t seem as if anyone was around. Nearby we noticed a large
hole with stinking water and flies all over it. It was deeper and we
were sure that people were living nearby.
“Hello?”
Bro got a call on his phone. He spoke and when the call cut, he
looked at me.
“What
is it?” I asked.
“Mom
and dad are here to surprise us.” We both stood stunned by
knowing this. What shall we answer them, that where were we!
“Bro!
See there. There’s a thin stream. Water is flowing from up.
Let’s follow the stream. From the top, we can figure out the
right way to go back.” I spoke aloud when I finally saw
something useful.
“Let's
see.” He followed me.
Walking
for about 15 more minutes, we saw some more small houses. They didn’t
seem abandoned. And…
“Hello!”
I screamed when we saw a military guy walking nearby a house. He saw
us but didn’t reply.
“Sir!
Can you please show us the way out?” Bro asked in a loud tone
from distance.
“This
way.” He spoke and gestured upside with his hand.
We
became calm when we realized we were on the right track. We walked
further and WOOSH! A branch of a tree fell before our feet from the
tree above us. We held each other's hand in that blow. Winds were
howling loud and it started raining.
Scared
us immediately moved under another tree to take shelter.
“Bro!
What shall we do now?” I asked him with starry eyes.
“Relax.
It is just a forest and we are about to reach the top. Let the rain
slow down.” Bro was himself scared but he anyhow made me calm.
A
few minutes later, the heavy pour reduced. We started moving again.
Soon we were at the top and saw the way towards the town.
“Finally!
We are safe now. Let's go fast, I want to meet mom dad.” I
didn’t want to wait even a moment there in that forest.
“Yeah!
Me too.” Bro held my hand and we ran towards the road we saw
from the top. We rushed through the bushes, shrubs and small trees.
On the way down, there were many rocks, and we had to jump through a
few of them because there wasn’t any way that would help us
balance to walk. It was risky and we had multiple thoughts going on
in our minds.
Finally,
we reached a road, a constructed one. “Let's walk towards the
town until we see any vehicle,” Bro said and I followed him
without a word. We were starving after so long a journey. It was dark
and our whole day was hectic.
Luckily,
an auto-rickshaw came from the back. Bro waved his hand from one side
of the road. The rickshaw stood and we took the lift to the town. We
met mom dad, who waited for us in the room.
“Where
have you been? You explored the places?” Mom was surprised to
see us wet and so tired.
“Yeah!
We indeed explored a lot!” Bro and I smirked at each other.
As
the river finds its way through the rocks, I am Pranali Vira, a
budding writer, trying to make my way in this creative literary
world. With an imaginary mind, writing is my passion and I have an
aim to make my career in it. With goofy thoughts, I hope to write
more and much better than my past work.
