A Little Fall of Rain……

 

The rain drops fell on the ground as tiny drops and grew into a larger pool.  

Rhea  

The rain looked like never-ending. The clouds grew darker and darker and Rhea had no hope. Tears rolled down her cheeks and her heart sank. With tons of homework and classes to attend, playtime had become a distant dream. She hoped today her dream will come true and here came the rain, the dark witch. The school holidays ran faster as she was busy with special coaching and practicing her music and dance. Rhea’s parents stood tall with their current parent values and made sure Rhea competed well with her counter parts. These days play time and nature’s gifts had become old generation pastimes. Unlike other kids of her age, Rhea always loved to play outside with her friends. She didn’t have many friends willing to play with her outside though. Most of her friends were glued to the television and the computers. Rhea is one among today’s lot forced with the virtual euphoria.  

She would have loved to play in the rain today but she knew she was prohibited to play outside. Her parents, both working, brought her up as an incubator baby preventing her from the outside pollution.  

Rhea heard her mom calling and she rushed in. Her mom wanted her to start her study early that evening. Rhea took her books and went into her room in silence. She knew in her heart of hearts, she will be free to make her bond stronger with her nature friend one day.  

Meena   

Meena stood in her patio looking at the down pour. She is a tall and slender girl in her late teens. As she stood looking at the rain, her beautiful thin lips stretched with a shy smile. The rain reminded her of her first meeting with Ram. She met Ram in a rainy day last year. Her whole body shivered and she could feel the rush of adrenaline at the instant she thought about him. It was the same feeling she had when she first saw him. It was an instant connection right from the moment she saw him. He was introduced to her by a mutual friend at the college cultural event. They became quick friends within a few months. The feelings they had for each other was never told but understood. They spoke for hours in phone, met quiet often with friends, and went out alone. The words were never spoken. They waited for each other to say. Meena gave a sigh as she felt the longing grow in her heart. She wanted to see him right now, hold his hand, look into his eyes and tell him how much she loved him. She smiled again at the thought. She looked at the rain and switched on her iPod. The music made the longing more. She could feel the sense of urgency to see him and hold him. She switched off the iPod and looked for her cell phone. The cell phone rang as she searched for it. She looked at the phone and the caller id showed Ram’s name. Her heart missed a beat and she took the phone with mixed feelings. Ram called her name and uttered in his husky tone “I missed you today. The rain made me miss you too much.” Meena felt her heart thumping and she decided to tell him today. The words didn’t come out. Ram sensed her silence and whispered to her the words she had been waiting to hear for a year.  

Janaki   

   

Janaki was looking at the wall clock as the rain continued gushing outside. She was married happily for 15 years now. With 2 beautiful kids and a loving husband her life was content as a home maker. The kids had settled with a cup of hot chocolate in their rooms. Janaki’s best half was away in his transit back home. She was worried with the rain becoming harder now. Raj had an hour worth of transit from his work to home. She imagined the racing cars and the unruly traffic in the city. Her fears grew as she couldn’t reach him in the cell. The cell complained of communication glitch. Janaki’s mind filled with mixed emotions of fear and anger. Raj always had this habit of missing his phone charge. Janaki felt helpless and nervous. She was paranoid with her imagination running wild as time tickled away. She retried Raj’s number one more time and she received the same message. Her heart beat increased and she could feel the sweat piling up in her face in spite of the heavy rain outside. She cursed and prayed at the same time. She tried hard to stop her racing imagination with a trail of unpleasant series of events.  

Janaki sat on the chair, her eyes fixed to the clock again. Her eyes moved from the clock to the home phone and the cell phone in her hand. She wished and pleaded silently to Raj to call her. Tell her he is safe. Let her know he will be home shortly.  

As Janaki was making her virtual mind connection with Raj, the door bell rang.  

She ran with all the hope and eagerness and opened the door. There he was, holding out his hand at the door step.  

The kids came out and looked at their crying mom. Janaki held Raj tight crying her heart out with the hours of wait taking the form of relief.  

 Sindhamani    

Sindhamani felt a sting of pain in her old and tired legs. She sat resting her back against the wall, stretching her legs out on the ground. The floor was chill with the rain pouring outside since morning. It did no good to the aching legs. Sindhamani, the retired sixty year old teacher had no one around at home except her. With years of effort to bring up her son after her husband’s early demise, she looked much older for a sixty year old. Being a single mom, her life had been a constant battle. She always dreamt of becoming a teacher since her childhood. In her child hood days girls stopped their schooling very early and got married. Sindhamani got married too but she convinced her husband in letting her complete her schooling and graduation. Her husband Muragan was graceful enough to allow her. Her happy life was short-lived when her husband was brought home dead by his co workers from the factory he worked in. She was left alone with her only son Ashok. The days that followed her husband’s disposal was hell. Surrounded by people of rusting mind-set, it was a great challenge bringing up her son. She was constantly watched and monitored by the people around. She was strong-willed and determined to continue her teacher profession. She made sure she was respected and acknowledged by her fellow people. Ashok grew up and got himself married. Though Sindhamani tried to be the best mother in law, her son’s wife detested her. Soon her son moved out of the hub, leaving sindhamani alone. It is not new to her being alone with no help. She accepted the fact she was destined to live single until her last breath. It is easy now being old and away from responsibilities. Once in a while she visited her son and family to help out. She kept her pain to herself, always posing as the sane mother. Lately her health had taken its revenge. With constant body aches and pain, Sindhamani felt her pain doubled along with her mental agony.  

The rain today had been very bad for her. It came from nowhere in the middle of summer adding to her pain. The power had died. It’s not unusual and in fact the power was up more than it should have been for the rain. Sindhamani lit a candle and sat back in the same posture relaxing her legs. Her gaze stayed at the pouring rain and it matched her inner heart.　  

Unaware of all the repercussions, the rain continued it’s dancing outside to the tunes of the cloud with the thunder orchestration by its side.  

    

The End