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MY RESIDENCE INFO:
City: London
State/Country: United Kingdom
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BOOKS PUBLISHED:
The READINGS by Tom Cheriyan (cheriyt@aol.com)
Lei looked at his watch. Five more minutes to freedom, He looked out of the window, as the plane taxied to take off. Amidst the din of the twin prop engines, his mind went back to Xia, the person who made this happen. His heart was heavy, as if it felt the pull of gravity on the aircraft. Leaving Xia was not easy.
One year back things were so different. Lei was a well respected councillor of the local province of Danshi. Well respected because of the fear of the power, the Party chiefs in HQ wielded. He did, almost everything by party rules. Unlike other corrupt officials, people always knew where he stood. That was until he met Xia, beautiful and considerate Xia.
Only a year back, he met Xia on the banks of river Shantze. It was a sweltering hot summer afternoon, when Lei, like so many in the office building, took his lunch on the river bank. The tranquil surrounding enabled him to write poetry to take his mind off his drab administrative duties. He remembered how the breeze of fate had taken some of his notes from his folder, to a pretty young girl with jet back hair and beautiful eyes. That was Xia. When Lei went over to get his notes, Xia could not help glance at the unfinished poem and comment. That was the beginning of a relationship that lasted this long. Each lunch break, they used to meet at the same place, discuss poetry, philosophy and politics and read from books together. They often sat close to one another, sometimes holding a book together, taking turns to read a chapter. On rainy days, they would stand under a palm tree, Xia holding the book, with her back on Lei, who held an umbrella, over their head. Lei found his thoughts and heart intertwining with Xia’s, as his body felt the warmth of hers. His hand would wrap, around her and bring her closer to him, as if to improve the quick transfer of thoughts. But all what it did was kindle the need within him to be close to Xia.
Xia’s voice seemed like balm to his aching mind, which was being troubled by the latest atrocity by HQ. Some private investors, with the local village cooperative had started oil exploration in the province, giving a boost to the local economy. HQ was happy, because it generated revenue through taxes. Then oil was struck. Lei remembered going for the party. He took Xia along. It was an evening of celebration for the whole community. It was also when Lei kissed Xia’s beautiful lips for the first time. As people danced and sang to the local musicians, Lei felt his heart growing warm at the radiance of her smile. As he held Xia’s hands, electricity passed through him and the whole world seemed to be spinning fast to the beat of the drums.
Lei admired Xia’s outspoken views on literature and politics. Xia’s father was a wealthy farmer, who sent his bright daughter to study philosophy in Kranze. Her education abroad made her stand out on principles of democracy and human rights, just what Lei believed in, but could not effectively practise. Policies for distributing wealth were a HQ matter and Lei was only a small cog in that machinery.
HQ moved in fast to nationalise the oil company. Lei was asked to secretly change some of the records, to invalidate the investors’ rights on the land. A year ago, he would have followed orders blindly. Now Lei was a changed man. Xia’s readings had shown him the light. She had shown him the Truth, which already existed deep within. Denying the investors of their rights was like denying himself of his rights. His mother had taught him that his community relied upon each individual acting responsibly and collectively.
Lei dared to testify against HQ, in front of local and national courts. In front of the national press, he stood up for the rights of the investors, something, the Danshi province had never witnessed before. HQ could not help, but accept defeat.
Then, he heard through Xia’s father, who had strong local underground connections that there was going to be an attempt to kidnap Lei. Acts such as these were seen as setting a bad example, almost like treason. Lei was accused by HQ to forge official documents for personal gain. There were police looking for him.
Xia drove him overnight to the international airport in the neighbouring province. She had arranged tickets and accommodation at her friend’s in Kranze, 17,000 miles away. As the airport official, checked his passport and looked at him, Lei felt a trickle of sweat under his shirt. With a nervous smile he took back his passport and moved to the boarding area.
It was while he was waiting there, that two police officials walked towards him. Lei flicked through his ticket, took a deep breath and quickly said a prayer. Lei felt his heart beat fast and his shirt was soon drenched in sweat. The police officials walked past Lei and questioned a passenger sitting two seats from him. The passenger was soon escorted away. Lei rushed off to the toilets, where he washed his face and breathed normally again.
Now, as the plane took off, he saw the land disappearing under him. There was a flash of lightning and Lei knew that it would be followed by thunder (for that was what his name stood for-thunder), a good omen for him. Lei thought of Xia. When they kissed goodbye, he felt Xia’s under lip quiver. There was both excitement and sadness. She had been a rock and a guiding star-the glow of his sunrise, as her name suggested. Lei, felt his old wall crumbling within, giving way to a new life. A new life of freedom. Xia had helped him to chip away at that old wall. Without her, he would not have reached very far. Lei was not sure when, they would be together again. But there was hope in his heart that there would be many more readings with lovely Xia, in the near future.
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STORY OF A TWISTED METAL TUBE
Little Prakash played near the City dump. Each day was like visiting Aladdin’s cave. There was so much, the waste heap could offer. Broken toys, pens, colourful books, calendars with picturesque scenes, even unopened packets of sweets!! Of course there was the daily battle to avoid the bandits, the other slum kids, who were there for the same purpose. Prakash’s mum was busy at the granite quarry and had to work hard for his sister who was dying of cancer. His father who was an alcoholic had left his family and moved to Surat. Now he was the man of the house, six years old and a lot of resilience and ambition.
Prakash had been to the quarry, which was owned by the father of the famous Mazar Khan, Bollywood heart throb. Now that was what Prakash dreamed of being, rich and famous like Mazar Khan. He remembered waiting for hours in the pouring rain amidst hundreds of people, to catch a glimpse of Mazar Khan, when he came to inaugurate the quarry project. The spotless white suit, the white leather boots, white-rimmed glasses – everything looked so right on him, until he slipped on a small metal tube and fell in the muddy rain-drenched ground. Mazar Khan was quickly whisked away after a very short opening ceremony. As for the metal tube, it came into Prakash’s possession simply because of his proximity to the incident. Next day all local papers carried news of this fall – when Mazar Khan, sneezed, it made the papers, when he fell, it made headlines!!
Prakash held onto the tube like a boy who had got the cookie. He believed that the magic of Mazar Khan had rubbed onto this metal tube. Now he was part of the magic and he held onto it with his dear life. This was his lucky charm. He called it Jeevan or life. This twisted, two-foot, metal tube or Jeevan became an integral part of Prakash’s life. When Prakash appeared on the waste-dump scene each day, the children called out, ‘here comes Jeevan Prakash’. (Jeevan Prakash = light of life).
Uncle Rajesh, who worked at the local blacksmith’s, offered to do some work on Jeevan. As Prakash stood in the sweltering heat, near the forge, he saw the tube turn whitish red in the heat. As he looked at the twisted mangled tube being transformed by the fire, he wished if there was such a powerful force that could cure his sister and make her better.
Prakash looked at Jeevan, framed and hung on the teak-panelled wall of his plush office-suite. It was nearly twenty years, since he acquired Jeevan. The magic had worked almost instantaneously. Now a manager of Mazar Khan’s import-export business, he reminisced how as a boy he visited his sister at the local hospital, close to the quarry. Dr. Priya, who was treating Prakash’s sister had a very kind face. She was puzzled when Prakash turned up with Jeevan, and chuckled at the story of how he got to acquire this magical metal tube. It turned out that his idol Mazar Khan, visted the same hospital after the infamous fall and was treated by Dr.Priya.
To Mazar Khan’s’s surprise, it was love at first sight, Bollywood style, minus the running round trees and dancing in the rain. The matinee idol, fell in love with the charming Dr Priya and was to get engaged soon. Seeing Prakash’s undaunting belief in the magic of Mazar Khan, Priya introduced the star to the little boy’s family. Mazar Khan took an instant liking to Prakash and struck by the family’s plight, adopted them. The star took care of his sister’s treatment and provided for his mother so that she did not have to work in the quarry anymore. Prakash completed schooling and graduated in business from a leading Bombay college and was now running the star’s trading business.
The intercom, suddenly buzzed and it was Prakash’s secretary reminding him of his next appointment. It was a meeting with local contractors to build a school near the slum, where he used to live. ‘The magic had still not worn out’, he thought to himself. With a smile, he got up, picked up his briefcase, smiled at Jeevan and left the office.
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