I stood at the airport watching them walk away, not knowing when or if I’d see them again…
My all of two and a half years’ frame drooped in sorrow and a tear escaped my eyes. Almost immediately, a pair of warm hands scooped me in to their arms and held me close. I could sense rather than hear her whispering words of comfort into my ears.
Born deaf, I had learnt to feel people and their moods. Right now, I could not feel her warmth and their kind assuring whispers. All I could feel was a ball of great ice lodged in my heart. And slowly, the chill spread to all parts of me. The numb cold terrified me even as my large eyes filled with tears.
My parents were gone. To a faraway land. They had left me with an absolute stranger. I had been hugged by her, coddled to death. She had whispered words of consolation.
And I had vowed to myself that I would be brave. And I can swear I had not shed a single tear even as they had walked away from me, maybe forever. I was brave, no?
But there is only so much a two-and-a-half-year-old could hold. The exhaustion and the sorrow of separation was starting to tell on me. I became listless. I quietly allotted myself a corner in the small cottage and let my tears flow, reminiscing my past happy life.
My new parent did not spoil or shower me with affection like my parents did. But she didn’t neglect me either. She was always at home, and seemed to be working on a computer just like my dad used to. I could see her talking and frowning and glued to her screen. But she always hugged me whenever she was not working and never missed my meals or bath or our quiet walks after dinner. But it is undeniable that I was lonely and wished for more love and attention.
One day as I was playing with my toys, I saw her coming inside from the garden, banging the front door, her eyes red and then smashing her phone on the ground. I literally went up in shock and hugged my huge teddy, hiding behind his grinning face. Slowly, I peeked and saw her sitting like a statue in front of her computer. Instinctively, I jumped on to her lap, booping her nose with mine. She stilled for a few seconds and then hugged me tightly, her tears spilling out like a fountain. That day, I realized I may never be able to love her to death but we would always have each other’s backs. A bond, hopefully seemed to be distantly forming…
It was a bright morning next day and I felt her calling me from outside, ” Baby, ready for our walk?” I ran to her, booping her nose with mine and replied lovingly and happily, ” Woof woof!”
© Aarthi v Karanam