Please note that this is a dream
and there are relations to people I know and have been associated with. I have
changed names, for my sake.
On Tuesday morning,
as I was getting ready to go to office, I got a call from this school friend of
mine, Mary. She was getting married. I was ecstatic as I was asked to be the
maid of honor.
Our friendship goes
way back to the days when we used to live in the same lane in Delhi. She and I went
to the same school and were in the same class, different sections though. We
are Telugu Brahmins and hers is a Christian family, but that was never a
hindrance in our friendship as our parents were also equally thick friends.
Mary has an elder
brother, Thomas. He considered me as his sister, in the same way he considered
Mary. So we were more of a family than friends. Those were really some good
days.
Being in different
sections and then moving to different places increased the gap in our
friendship. We slowly became hi-hello friends. In spite of that, she called me
to inform that I was her maid-of-honor was really an honor for me.
To top it all, attending
a proper Christian wedding was my dream. Actually getting married in Christian style
is my dream, but attending also is great. This gave me an opportunity to
fulfill a part of it, though. So I was happy.
I agreed to it immediately
and started contacting all my friends in Delhi. Most of them agreed to attend
since this gives us a great chance to meet after like almost a decade.
Also Mary being my
school friend, she was their friend too J.
Next day, Mary called
me to know about my itinerary and inform me about my stay. I told her that Mom
was coming along with me. The news made Mary’s mom happier than anyone. It
would have more than 20 years since they saw each other. After Uncle’s demise,
we did not get to meet Aunty and this could be an apt occasion is what Mom also
felt and agreed to accompany.
I reached Delhi on
Saturday morning. The ceremony was due on Sunday. So I had the whole day to myself,
to meet my friends, hangout in our favorite places. Thomas received us and gave
us another big surprise, the wedding was to be held in the school.
This was superb news
for me, since I have been attached with my school. I love everything about the
place, the teachers, my classmates, even the principal and vice-principal. And
not to forget the non-teaching staff who were most supportive to us. I jumped
at the news and rushed to the school. As a maid of honor, it is my responsibility
to oversee all the arrangements and ensure that everything goes on without
hiccups. Frankly, the real reason was to revisit my school and relive some
memories, if not all.
The feeling was
overwhelming, the moment I entered the building. There were many changes to the
place, but the essence was still intact. I became nostalgic when I was just
wandering around the primary section, the foundation of our lives.
There is a way to the
playground from this section, the place where the wedding was to take place. The
preparations were going on in full swing.
Sometime later, I really
don’t know, after how much time, Thomas came and took me to the hotel. Mom had
directly gone to the hotel, to check on Aunty, if she needed any help.
Surprisingly, there was a Haldi ceremony, which usually takes place in a Hindu wedding
ceremony. But looks like Mary liked that ceremony so much that she wanted it as
a part of her wedding as well. And Mom was there, so she was guiding Aunty on
how to go about that ceremony. I was standing at the end of the garden, enjoying
the happiness that Mary had on her face.
Soon I was joined by
my school friends. The reunion felt great, after a hectic work schedule, a
sudden relaxation of this stature is a boon to one’s life. And I was no exception.
Thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent with them, reliving old days.
In my heart and I am
sure in hers, Mary knew that I was longing for a break like this. So she let me
have my share of fun with my old buddies, I totally loved her for this!!
There was kumkum,
haldi, bangles, coconut and all in a Christian which was an amazing blend of
cultures. So there we were, enjoying the ceremony, where out of nowhere, Meena
comes out hurling abuses at me. I was appalled, dumbstruck with no idea why she
was scolding me like that.
Thomas jumped into
the scene like a samurai and handled it all too well. He sent me back to the
hotel and asked others to take care of Meena.
Meena was a classmate
but not a very close buddy. We were always on good terms, so a sudden
bombardment of this sort was shocking for me. I was still in a state of shock
when I reached my room. I could not understand why she behaved like that. The
biggest surprise was, no one stopped her!! She kept shouting but no one opposed
her. I could not understand why!!
“One can’t please
all.” This statement, I could never understand and believe. I could never
handle someone not liking me. Though there were people I did not like, but I could
not tolerate if someone said they did not like me. I would continue to pester
the person asking them for a reason for disliking me. And now this, in public
was more of embarrassment for me. I spent the rest of the time in the room
crying. I did not go back to the venue so that I do not trouble Mary with this
situation.
Though I did not like
what happened, the next day, I put everything behind and went to the school.
This was Mary’s day and as the maid of honor, it was my duty to ensure nothing
went wrong. As soon as I reached the school, I was spellbound. The ground was
decorated with flowers; the stage was setup for the ceremony. Everything was just
so beautiful and perfect. The ground was getting watered and the morning sun
shone to the water droplets creating small rainbows around. There could have no
better place for Mary to get married and I was so happy for her!!
Suddenly, a coconut
from yesterday’s Haldi ceremony came hurling at me. I just missed it. I turned
around to see who and from where it came. Just then Meena came running with
another coconut in her hand. She threw me on the ground and shouted at me,
asking me if she should throw another one at me. I was speechless; I did not
know why she was shouting at me like that.
This time, I shouted
back at her, “Haan mar de..tere dil ko bhi tasalli mil jayegi. Lekin kyun…yeh toh bata de???”
She replied, “mere
papa ko maarne ke time pe yeh pata nahi socha tha kya tune?”
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The end *********************************************
