Childhood is the best period of a man’s life. Carefree and innocent,
the child is still adventurous, exhibiting a quality of curiosity. He is oblivious
to the fear of the unknown. In fact the mystery is even more beckoning.
When one grows up on a heavy diet of books, especially
the likes of Famous Five and The Secret Seven, this idea takes a stronger
form. It is easy to imagine oneself as a young sleuth trying to figure out the thief
stealing Das Aunty’s prized dahlias, or as a hero rescuing the baby bulbuli bird abandoned by its mother,
and at times the explorer whose curiosity gets better of him and gets him to
explore the compound of the abandoned Dutta bari.
Such was my childhood. Growing up in the steel city of
Jamshedpur, we were a gang of eight. Though studying in different schools, we
had formed a strong friendship which is often brought by the fact of living in
the same para. Our games were quite
simple, hide and seek, chain-chain, lock and key, and an occasional game of
cricket or football. But the real fun lay when we went exploring. Riding our
cycle, we felt so free and liberated, we went round the old and familiar
roads, the new and not so familiar streets, ringing the cycle bell with
excitement, calling each other names, shouting out cautions, and laughing our hearts out.
It was during one such evening, that we found ourselves near
Domani. This area was a 15 min ride away from our homes, and marked the meeting
point of two rivers, Kharkhai and Subarnarekha. It had been our long
unfulfilled dream to cycle to this spot ever since we came here for the Chhat
puja celebrations. The river bank ran along for five kilometres and we had to
climb down the cemented steps to reach the river. It was a forbidden spot, more
so if you were a child and unaccompanied by an elder. But today, there we
stood, defying the rule, infused with the spirit of an explorer, breathing in
the fresh, musky smell of the river, savouring the sight of a new land! The Dalma
hills with its lush green forests lay on the other side, the electric lights of
the small hamlets flickered in the evening twilight; we saw people being
ferried across the river to their homes; they will be back again on this side
in the morning with fresh supply of vegetables and fish. It was a moment, a
calm, breath taking moment in life that stayed with all of us forever.
Our moment was interrupted by the screeching sound of a
powerful vehicle. A cloud of dust hindered our vision, and once it settled down
we were presented with the sight of the new Tata Safari STORME Explorer edition. Our eyes admired the
curves of this bevy black beauty, which in every way looked the perfect SUV. We
never saw Mohit’s uncle stepping out of the car and the angry look on his face.
We were let off by after a tough scolding, but Mohit had it tougher getting his
ears boxed in public! Anyways we decided, it was a day well spent, with the
river bank finally conquered, we felt victorious. Thank goodness for childhood
and the madness it brought with it.:)
This post is an entry for the #I am Explorer contest for Indiblogger.
