The Bubble - A short story

That was a prized possession. Like a very old dream coming true. This silk mattress is marvelous. Just sink into the bed and forget about everything,or just relax and pass comments about the happenings around us or shed a few drops of tears for the ones who endure miseries elsewhere in the world though the flashy i -pad. I can now do everything as I please wallowing in the comfort of a silk mattress. When I visited Beijing, the tour operator took us to a place where we were shown how silk is produced from the silk worms. The coocons were stretched dexterously to make a thin layer of silk. A number of such layers were stacked together to make mattress. I wanted to buy one but my purse was not supportive then

Once upon a time, I was poorer than this. Everything was not even at a hand's distance. My papa did not have the famous plastic cards. There was no concept of kids playing with toys. Father earns to fill at least 6 stomachs. Besides roti, kapda and makan, there was another not so necessary need- schooling. Everyone was sent to school. To government run or government aided schools. Some passed out, some fell on the way. Nothing unnatural in these incidents however. 

No one seemed to have dreamt big, but somehow everyone sailed though. So did I too. Much later, I saw a carpet on the floor of one of my colleagues' house. I felt so sad about not owning one of its kind. Forget about the carpet, I was not living in a decent rented house then. Wish list was long but the purse was not strong enough to support the wishes. 

Time progressed. Slowly but surely I grew up to meet some old wishes but new wishes found their places on the list, knowingly or unknowingly. That large floor carpet still remained elusive. I could never bring home a carpet yet. Somehow, it is so near but still so far. I can afford to go to good hotels and eat big meals now. Could own a house in the metro city. Everything started looking achievable, if not easy

By then, the shadow started growing. Blood sugar on the border...Anytime it may cross the "rekha" and then I will be declared diabetic! Diabetics is a bad disease. I wanted to avoid it at any cost. Started controlling my diet, started doing some physical exercises. Desparately wanted to get rid of the little tummy. Everyone said, it is a symbol of richness!! A malayalam couplet assures, tummy is a symbol of masculinity. I don't believe this anyway. I could not spend more than five hours on my silk mattress. The back started aching severely by then. I feared to eat food,lest it may build up the cholesterol level. Fear almost got better of me.

Jogging everyday evening became a part of the routine. All though the day I ran after Gandhi. At the end of the day, in a track suit I hit the roads to burn away a part of the fat earned. I forgot the taste of a good sweet made in ghee. Tea is without sugar. Dishes are so monotonous and showing no emotions like salt or chilly. Still, the taste of dollars that got accumulated in the NRI account was so sweet. My eyes twinkled like stars while looking at the account summary online every month end!! Dreams started become reality faster than expected. "Aasayalulla paasam" ( the rope of wishes)  grew longer and longer. 

I ran six kilometers non stop everyday. Observed strict regimen of dieting. Perched on a weighing scale, i gave a long sigh. Weight was gradually reducing. My tummy has beaten a graceful retreat. Well, almost. One day, halfway through the long run, I fell. Could not take anything that I accumulated though my hard work. Could not even enjoy the fruits that I meticulously cultivated. Could not say a good bye to anyone. They laid me on a plantain leaf. Hey, where was my silk mattress? They just described me as "body", giving scant respect to my social and economic status. They never cared if I was a top executive of a big corporate. There were a lot of obituary on the social media. Most striking among them was "life is just a bubble on water. It can burst anytime without a warning. How long you lived is not important but how you lived is." I am sure, I am sure, this person has sent this message from his arm chair....!!

ഭോഗങ്ങൾ എല്ലാം ക്ഷണപ്രഭാചഞ്ചലം 
വേഗേന  നഷ്ടമാമായുസ്സുമോർക്ക   നീ 
വഹ്നിസന്തപ്ത ലോകസ്താംബു ബിന്ദുനാ 
സന്നിഭം മർത്യ ജന്മം ക്ഷണഭംഗുരം ....

(ലക്ഷമാണോപദേശം, അദ്ധ്യാത്മരാമായണം )