Glimpse - "The Most BEAUTIFUL Illusion"

No other song can be as meaningful and melodic as the tune heard from the soul within; as tender as a new-born infant, my heart was happy dancing to the rhythm of my soul. I waited for my next assignment; and this time I was visiting a cancer home.

It was a bright Monday morning, getting late to the shuttle was a usual thing for me–I ran, not to exercise but to reach office on time, a neighborhood lady, rather a hawk waited to mock at me for the wonderful work-out I carried out without fail dressed impeccably and formally. Though my brain ran the “IGNORE” command, my heart always waited to feel bad. I always missed the shuttle and ended up in a taxi or a rickshaw asking the driver to compete with the speed of light despite running as swift as a cheetah. Most of the drivers understood my plight but some are always a hard-nut to be cracked.

My work was my passion; no restrictions as long as I was ethical. It brought me to the worlds of different people from various walks of life. I worked as a columnist for one of the leading news-papers and my assignment was to gather news from special homes and NGOs. Visiting orphanages, rehabilitation centers and old-age homes was part of the assignment. Visiting orphans, old-people and homeless was not an easy job at all, but the lessons learnt are beyond explanation. At times, I got carried away with the emotions but slowly I had learnt not carry the baggage with me.

Days went by and I had a cancer home visit pending under my bucket. For the first time, I felt a little uncomfortable yet, I masked it with super-excitement. Unknowingly, I had delayed visiting this place and it was strange.

It was a Wednesday morning; cold breeze ran down my spine as I sat in the car. I rolled the windows up and asked the driver to turn-off the radio. The driver reluctantly pressed the button till the Radio Jockey went mute. I chose to ignore and drowned in my thoughts of imagination about the place I was going to.

The car stopped at an old building, which resembled the Gothic architecture from the medieval period. I looked at the card to reconfirm the address before I paid the fare. The driver rushed even before I was completely out of the car and immediately turned on the radio. I smiled as I looked up admiring the building I was walking into. The building had a huge wooden gate with a top-mounted latch and a guard who greeted people with a warm smile and a visitor register. As I walked in, I noticed a well-maintained tall building with stone cladding on one side that stood between a lovely garden of tulips and roses blooming in glee inviting the bumble-bees to kiss them.

What a contradiction it was; it was one of the most beautiful illusions I was experiencing. It was a palace that had seen the most painful tears and the dreadful agony of the cancer victims yet, it gleaming with happiness. As I explored the place, a lovely piece of sculpture of a mother holding her baby tight to her bosom and caressing it caught my sight.

 The mother wore a white saree, her hair was let loose and it covered one of her eyes and her fore-head was smeared with vermilion. The baby’s face was fragile; the cheeks resembled a tiny ball of snow with traces of saffron lines, wrapped in a sky blue towel, his tiny hands and feet were hanging in the air with his neck turned to the right. I could not wait anymore to know who the artist was; I bent down to read the artist’s name and the world came to still

 “In the fond memory of my son” ………………………..

“The glimpse of yours at once caught my sight, what an awesome artistry I thought; until I reached the foundation to realize the ugly truth that lay beneath the beautiful master-piece that stood.