RE-PLAY

This is a story about the self-discovery of a person in lockdown during the pandemic of COVID19.

It was a red and orange coloured kite.

Laced with a ribbon like tail of many colours, it looked like a stretch of rainbow when in sky. Everybody knew that the kite of house 119-B L.D colony was invincible. Nobody could keep a track of the countless kites it had cut. On a sunny evening when many of the kids used to go to the terrace and fly their kites... eventually by dusk, only one kite used to fly along with the red glowing Sun.

The owner of the flying warrior was Abhir.  His daily school life and studies being part a monotonous routine, his kite was one of precious assets. At the age of 12 he mastered the art of flying a kite like a sailor would do with the sails of a boat. In time he learnt to maintain and repair the damages of the kite. Some curious neighbours, on seeing their kids being defeated repeatedly by Abhir used to nickname him the “Sachin Tendulkar of Kites”. Abhir’s father used to chuckle and exclaim “You are having a great time son, I wish I was as talented as you.”

A river flowing towards the ocean sometimes twists and turns in the most unexpected ways. Such is destiny.

As Abhir grew up, the pressure of his studies grew. A simple stream of wind which the mind would enjoy carelessly got replaced by the detailed mechanism of air flow using Bernoulli’s principles. His time for leisure decreased by every passing day and his mind got filled with facts and figures for his survival in a competitive world. And as time flew, Abhir’s kite got mixed with the fossilized remains of his childhood.

The year is 2020.

Abhir was in a dream when he heard his alarm go off. With a disgust he pressed the snooze button and closed his eyes. Suddenly a siren from a police van rang out somewhere nearby, and a voice announcing “Stay indoors, don’t go out unless necessary”. His sleep went on a moon trip hearing that announcement. Yes it was another day of a “new routine” he was learning to adjust... in fact the whole world was learning to adjust. The world had stumbled into a pandemic.

He got up and went to the balcony of his house.  The road connecting to the main bazaar was visible. Unlike the other days when the road used to be congested with the hustle bustle of the buses and cars, today the street was empty. The constant bee-like buzz of the people in the shops was missing and creating an unusual silence. One could only hear the breeze and the sound of the leaves of the trees rubbing with one another in the nearby park. These days a variety of birds could be seen chirping there. Some even boldly sitting on the railings of the balcony where Abhir was standing. “The nature is healing herself” Abhir had heard this quote many times these days but was not sure whether this was permanent or temporary. “Usually we go back to square one” he thought.

Washing his hands he opened his laptop to check if there were any mails from his office. These days his work load had been fluctuating due to the lockdown. The production in his industry had got impacted, but as of now the company was holding tight. Anyways he would face the things as they come that was all he could do. His parents were now old and special care had to be taken that they don’t go outside. If anything was needed he would go… that was the deal.

Amidst growing boredom and captivity... there are some minds which even Netflix can’t provide amusement. They just aren’t meant for staying locked inside the four walls. Abhir was such a person. He missed the fresh meadows and the countryside outside the city. It had been one month since they had been told not to venture outside their houses, as some person residing nearby had died due to the virus. Their colony had been sealed off.

That afternoon he thought of checking some old photo albums. He felt intrigued by seeing a few of them and wanted to see more. His mother told that they had been locked away in a trunk. Taking it out of the store room, he unlocked it. He felt like he had opened a treasure box left away by the pirates. No gold or silver, but treasures of his memories.  His school uniforms and school bag… some fancy pencils and WWE cards… some of his favorite story books, comics and novels which he used to read over and over again were lying there stacked on top of one another like layers of soil deposited over time.

As he removed them and smelled the pages of the books… he saw something unfamiliar but something still being familiar in some corner of his mind. On removing some more things, what he saw sent waves of electric current through his spine. It was his orange and red colored kite. Lying in the dirt like an antique. The colour had faded but he was amazed to feel the strength of its wings attached to the wooden frames. Holding it as gently as possible he looked at it and caressed it. As if meeting a long lost lover, a smile crossed his lips as he fondled with his memories in his mind.

It was 4:45 P.M and he felt an urge to do something which he couldn’t resist… even if the world comes to a standstill he would have done it … such was his urge. Taking his kite and the necessary kit, he went to the terrace of his house. A mild wind was flowing. He understood that it was exactly the condition he needed. Everything seemed to re-play again for him. Tying the kite to a long string, he inspected to make sure that the kite did not have any issues, and then he dropped the kite from the terrace railing and gave the string a pull… as if gone from a long dive downwards, the kite soared up high in the air. He continued pulling the string and in each pull the kite went up higher and higher... sometimes left and sometimes right. It wiggled like a fish in a pond, which was a beauty to watch for Abhir. He felt the vibration of the air the kite was pushing against… his flying warrior had resurfaced.

Just that moment Abhir heard sounds of pots and pans from nearby houses. Some people had come up to the terrace and some on their balconies and were clapping. People were showing solidarity towards the essential workers fighting together against the pandemic. Everyone saw the time and event as a nation coming together as one to stop the spread of the pandemic.

But that was the time of a different significance for Abhir. His present and past came together, in the emptiness and grim situation of his surroundings, the lockdown helped him rediscover the joys of simplicity, which he had long lost to stay afloat in this competitive fact oriented world.

He discovered himself …

Now it was the world’s turn to discover itself too.  

Author's Note

I would like to know how you felt after reading it.