Song from Home

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After a long walk on June morning, I decided to rest under the shade of pines. I tied my hair in a bun as they were soaked in sweat. 'The cool shade of pines', I said under my breath. My twin joined me after some time and sat with me. We were chatting about how weird the weather is here, we feel so cold in the shade that a sweatshirt is required and the sun is so hot that we tend to sweat in tank tops.

An old lady, a native of a nearby village, might be coming toward us. Her toothless lips curled up in a smile. There was shine in her wrinkled -sunburnt cheeks. She started to sing,

'ठंडी ठंडी हवा चलदी झुल्दे चिला दे डारू... (Loose translation: with the playful pine leaves there blows a cool calming breeze).

She looked at us as if wanted us to complete her song. This song wasn't new to us. Every kid from Himachal knows it. There are so many memories related to these folk songs. I could only smile at her. I tried to sing but the lyrics just stuck inside my throat. They were struggling to come out of my mouth. Once our home was filled with these songs. Now no one lives there to sing. 

She repeated her song. Her longing eyes were waiting for us to complete her song. When she felt that no one was going to complete her song, she prepared herself to move ahead with a sad smile. Usually, I don't care about what others think about me but I did not want to disappoint her. I knew that sad smile on her face would haunt me forever if I didn't complete those lyrics. I sang back 

' हो जीणा कांगड़े दा' ( that's how life in Kangra). 

After singing two lines she shook hands with me and went on her way. Suddenly that face was familiar to me. That voice once used to soothe me, I had known that touch forever. I stared at her moving figure until she vanished from view. She emerged from the pines and merged back into the pines. Meanwhile, I heard my twin singing,

"ठंडी ठंडी हवा चलदी झुल्दे चिला दे डारू 

हो जीणा कांगड़े दा..."

 

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Nidhi katoch
A silent observer in search of her TRUE HOME. If you like my writings, do comment and share... Views are extremely personal and are original writings of mine.

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