"Castles of Sand - Constellation of Peace"

Sound sleep had become a rough mission; pleasant dreams turned to nightmares. No state of mind is as dreadful as insomnia is what she realized then. She woke up at frequent intervals; assuming that she suffered from sleep paralysis. Almost every single soul who visited in her dreams either begged for pardon or cried for forgiveness Going deeper into those dreams and contemplating them was out of scope and she cared the least to know more about them. A couple of weeks passed by and sleep being the quintessential need of one’s life to sustain; she had to find a way on her own to come out of this painful situation.

 Plethora of flowers bloomed in the garden; she lay on her back looking at the starlit sky with mind peeping into the old and dull books of her days gone by. She had come to the garden seeking solitude. She closed her eyes for a while trying to ease her mind and body from the hectic schedules life threw at her when she heard a gang of little girls scream and dance blissfully ; they were busy building sand castles and running around it singing rhymes taught at school. She wanted to move away from that place the very next moment but slowly she realized that their voice in unison was feast to ears. She opened her eyes and smiled involuntarily thinking, this is the place where one has to be to be to move away from melancholy; the sky was merely a vacuum and the stars bejeweled it. Castles in sand were meant to be gone by the wind but the girls built them with ease and celebrated every bit of it.

The little girls sang and danced with delight bringing out the lovely sound waves into space; she found no difference between the little angels and the sky. Both were just space and so was her mind. Inadvertently her mind started creating freedom that she yearned for; she was lost in stupor; her mind traveled slowly to take a peek at the closed books of her life; peacefully it read the lines – Peace is within you – Your mind is a sky and the thoughts you sow in it are the stars; create a lovely constellation of forgiveness like the music tweeted by the little girls around the sand castles.

The bright rays of the sun danced on her face waking her up; she opened her eyes to find the little girls and the starlit sky; gone were they leaving her in the state of trance. She had forgiven everyone she held a sense of vengeance on; she smiled looking at the mirror and said –

“Songs of tranquility is what I heard looking at the starlit airspace; I let go every bit of retaliation from me; the constellation of Peace is what I outline in the garden of my mind and let the flowers of "Love" blossom at all seasons"

"Scarred Soul"

A striking carved cot with intricate designs stood in the drawing hall; it was a lovely piece of work, the black color of the wood complimented the sky-blue painted wall of the bed-room. The legs of the cot were carved round with a glossy finish on the surface. We all stood spellbound looking at the wonderful art and appreciated the skill of the old carpenter who stood smiling at the door. We thanked the old-man for his dedicated hours of work and rewarded him handsomely for his craftsmanship and bid good-bye. While everyone stood admiring the wonderful artistry of the carpenter, there was one person who did not have a single word to speak about or appreciate the beauty of the lovely piece that stood a midst us. I was awestruck and this reaction from her was the least anticipated one.

It was a hot sunny afternoon, we had walked all the way back from school and it was a tiring day. We ran into the kitchen to gulp a glass of water and munch on some cookies. My friend ran into my study-room and started finishing her home-work while I threw my shoes and bag on the floor and relaxed watching cartoon show on the TV. I had dozed away until I heard my mom knocking at the door. She asked me about the school and gave me a bar of chocolate and went upstairs to see if the old-man was working. The old-man smiled at her and said that the cot was being made as per the instructions and he said he would be delivering it as expected. Mom smiled at him and came downstairs, I then realized that my friend had disappeared for quite some time then and went to the study-room to find her. I was a little surprised to see her books lying on the floor without her, I went to the other room where the old-man was working, he looked oblivious of the situation and I came downstairs to check with my mom if she saw her.

My friend had started to behave very strange towards me, I felt ignored and lost. I cried to mom about her behavior towards me. Mom was quite surprised to see my best buddy abandoning me, it was more than a week since she had even walked back from school with me, I missed my dear friend but I had got accustomed to it now. Almost a couple of months passed by, but my friend was never the same.

45 days, and the cot was completed as promised, the old-carpenter stood with his master-piece with smugness when my friend walked in. My happiness knew no bounds; I ran to her and showered her with kisses and hugs. I looked like a pup running and wagging its tail out of happiness by the sight of his master. My friend stood still while I still smiled and screamed with joy bringing the roof down. The carpenter left with his sum leaving his beautifully crafted cot to us with his usual smile. I grabbed my friend by her hands and pushed her on the cot, tears rolled down her cheeks. I was startled looking at my friend sob. I sat beside her, she was lost.

I slept watching cartoon, when my friend went upstairs to the study-room to finish the homework; the old-carpenter had exhibited his skills on the girl behind the closed door. The girl wept in agony, I was dumb-founded. I looked at the cot that stood in the huge bed-room of my parents and I looked at my best friend weeping. The carvings on the cot  were no more designs that appealed to my eyes just a few minutes back, it was a piece of blemish that reflected the old-man’s thoughts and his scandalous act.  

Heinous was he, shameful were his actions; with a monster dwelling in him, a facade of forged smile he wore, skills he had not to just carve designs but leave the body of my friend and my soul scarred forever.