The next thing i remember was sitting in a large hall lit with lanterns and some lady putting blankets on me. 'drink this', said a harsh voice. All i could think off is gulping down the hot cup of tea or whatever the stuff was with fright and then go, 'aaaaaaaaaaa..'..i scalded my tongue.
'Dumb...really dumb girl! cant u exercise caution. it was supposed to be sipped slowly.' At this point i realized i was petrified. maybe she sensed it n i could feel her voice soften after that. she handed me a glass of water to soothe my burning mouth and sat next to me.
'wats ur name girl?, why u here?', she asked, now gently.
'Maya..Maya Mathur. I came to visit my family in the village. Vijay Pratap Mathur was my father. He is no more. Am visiting my Uncle Veer Pratap Mathur and his family.'
'Hmm..the zamindars grandaughter..werent u the naughty one..i have seen u trodding my gardens many times..hmm..ages ago' . I could see the sudden change of expression on her face, n then i saw her smile..that should be a world record. I bet no one ever saw this happen. the old lady smiled!
" Hmm..living in the city are you?..u look weak. dont u eat well. are u married?"
These questions put the flames of nostalgia out and put me back on present. I dint know how to explain. yes i live in city. i am weak as i have cancer and i am divorced. women her age and of her times..i wonder if they heard of divorce. all the passing thoughts ..she decided not have the answer when she saw my face.
' U must be hungry, dry urself well, i will pass u dry clothes. u can have dinner and stay here for the night. todays kids..u need proper feeding female'
With this she walked off. Minutes later another middle aged lady who had given me the blankets appeared. I guess she worked for the old lady. she gave me wierd looks as she passed me the clothes. I bet they hardly entertained any guests. No wonder she felt i was strange.
"change ur clothes now. its cold. dinner is gettin ready!"
Dinner was the most amazing i had in ages. though i couldnt eat more lest i get back to my vomittin due to my disease. 'u dnt even eat properly' was the ladys complaint. I decided to call her Dadi..fr grandmother. I was being cared for and that made me feel happy...it was ages since i lost my parents and i never felt home till this day and it came frm the last place on earth i expected.
I went over to the well to wash my hands and when i returned i couldnt find Dadi. i saw a light flickering in the room close to the kitchen and walked there. It was also lit up with lanterns, a small room with photographs on the walls, garlanded and a small earthen lamp on the stand on each frame. She was in prayer when i walked in. The whole house had meagre furnishings. mostly cane furniture, and the beds were rolled out mats on the floor. it made the huge house looked empty.
'
