1. You Waiting for me Happily at home - My favorite
time was you returning home after your shift in the factory or after several
days from your official and non-official trips or may be after months of
staying out of town… I used to run downstairs from our tiny little workers’
quarter at the 2nd floor (American friends please read it 3rd
floor) to greet you! It took me several years to reach the height when I could
unlatch the door (as the locks where located on the top of the door) on my own.
But me being myself, always so demanding and always so ready to give you all
the stories that happened at home in your absence didn’t even mind troubling others.
Did you know, one such day upon hearing the sound of your motorbike (our
Rajdoot), I ran to Didibhai and asked her to open the door. Probably that was a
very bad day for her and I nagged her too much. She gave me a nice tight slap
before she realized that I would even tell you about what just happened. Before
I could open my mouth and scream, I realized she started massaging my cheek
with moisturizer only with the hope that her fingerprints will fade away before
you enter the home. I was shocked! No, not because I was slapped for the first
time (And the very last time!) but because I saw she started crying before I
could understand what just happened to me. Baba, by the time you entered home
that night after talking to few people who were waiting for you at the gate to
solve their problems, I forgot all about the slap that I just got minutes
before. Because I used to wait for that particular moment when I could share
all the “happening things” that happened during the day including me failing exams
in my nursery classes 😜
I believe the time is now perfect when I can
expect you to give me few months of your life to wait for me at home, all happy
and excited to share your day with me. I want you to forget everything bad that
happened during the day and feel equally excited when I come home as if you
were just waiting for me the way I used to…. Will you please, Baba?
2. You going with me for drive- Amongst your three
daughters, no one can have a doubt that I rode the motorbike the most with you.
Much more than anyone else. I enjoyed it so much that one of the persistent fears
I had was growing up! I used to fear what if I grow up and you become elderly
and unable to ride a bike anymore! When everyone was complaining about your
reckless driving, I was the only one who would vouch for it! My Baba bestest! J And, you of all people
knew I faced the most accidents while riding in your bike. So many times, you
and I lied to Ma…. Those were our little secrets, our world. Now, I want you to
give me some time so that I can take you for drive through new roads, new
places, face some adventures and make some new memories. Can you please give me
that time to make new memories with you while the roads pass by us again and we
sing “ei poth Jodi na sesh hoy…”?
3. Writing about your experiences- Yes, you asked me to
write about my experience when you took me on an over-night journey with a sick
patient in an ambulance. Ma was so angry with you for doing that. She said, I would
be an utter failure in my life and you would be responsible for all of that!
And remember that time, when we were waiting for the dawn to break before
crossing the infamous forest, which was not recommended to cross at night on
the way to Jamshedpur? You decided do it anyway. Most of the time I did not even
understand the reasons behind those sudden overnight trips I made with you but now
I think, I just used all opportunities that let me spend few more extra
hours with you: traveling, learning, listening to you! Now, I want you to
write your experiences from all these years dealing with so many people and so
many places.
The
other day I overheard somebody narrating a story from his experience that
changed his perception for lifetime towards a ‘different’ community.
Unfortunately he got into a trouble on the road with a person who happened to
be from a different community and the small trouble on the street took a
communal color eventually. After that incident he can’t trust people from that
particular community and find solace in his ‘own’ community. It left me
thinking about various incidences that I experienced when I was young. One such
was you disciplining all guys in the locality equally who showed tendency towards
choosing not the right path. Faces of Rajib da and Altaf da flashed in front of
me. How you cared for both! How you thought both should become the best they
could become!
The young and fairytale loving
me had no clue of what’s the meaning of ‘Altaf’. I used to think they are band
of troublemakers who wear ‘Alta’ (The red dye women apply on feet during
weddings or festivals) on their feet like bandits of old Bengali stories. I
used to call their gang ‘Alta Pora Chele’ (Guys with Alta on their feet) and it
became a standard joke in our home those days! I do not remember a single
incidence where anyone could accuse you of treating any of them differently, owing
to difference in religion/age/gender/political affiliation etc. I rather remember their guardians coming
to you to take your advice on disciplining them better. How did you do that
Baba? I believe, in this troubled times when all of us are becoming more and
more self-centered with every passing year, we need to hear more from people
like you who thought differently, treated equally and fought for others rights fearlessly.
Can you start writing please?
Will you gift me these? Will you make my life more special
with your time and your writing? Will you help me to make more memories to
cherish and leave our legacy for the generations to come? Happy Birthday, Baba!
You are the most special person in our lives!
