The thing that killed me made me feel alive

Hello readers!
Yes...it's been a long time and yes....I apologize! But I'm back! Hope you like this one....and the inspiration for this one...take a guess! A clue! It's inspired  from   a Hollywood movie I refuse to watch and people around me never quit talking about!

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I was failing my arms, screaming my guts off, gravity was trying to do it's job but couldn't as my seat had strapped me to it. No matter what direction I was being pulled at, I would not budge from my seat...
Others were screaming too..some used  profanity while some prayed. Some were shouting at the top of their voice, while some were deathly silent. The world was Topsy Turvy, the outcome uncertain...
Jus for a moment...I felt so alive....at the cusp of life and death....I felt more alive than I had ever felt before...
My whole life flashed before my eyes ..
I felt regret....was my life so mundane that I could summarize it in a moment..
Was a instant all it took for me to rewind and replay my life? That is sad.
Is this how my trivial life ends? In regret? Feeling Unsatisfied? being Incomplete?
My sense of self pity was so intense, I felt something shift...an experience totally new, a feeling I was not familiar with....
I'm standing at the entrance of my school...
Wait.... what?! Wasn't I just... dying?!
What was that feeling? What had shifted??
It finally clicked....I had time travelled ....to the past! I had been given a second chance.
I took this opportunity as a God sent and began re-living my life in my terms!
I was making the most of it ..of what? My life!!! I pursued my passion.... designing. I went ahead and proposed to my crush! I gave back when I was disrespected, I loved with abandon... I lived!
And when the dreaded day came nearer and nearer...I decided to do something so different so far apart, it would change my fate...
So instead of the plane that I had to take for an event I was invited to, I decided to stay put in my place, on the ground. That's when my friends suggested an amusement park..
An innocent enough suggestion...

I was failing my arms, screaming my guts off, gravity was trying to do it's job but couldn't as my seat had strapped me to it. No matter what direction I was being pulled at, I would not budge from my seat...
I met my fate in the end. Could not escape it. A plane, an amusement park ride. Fate had tied them up together to deliver my Providence.
I stopped screaming and went silent as I thanked God for the second chance given to me..so that I could relive my life in my terms. I was ready to let go now....

Deadly Deo

Hello Readers,

I'm again back to the first person narrative with this one. My natural style of writing and the one I'm most comfortable with. 

This is not as serious or dark as my previous posts. Please don't try to read more into it and forget what it basically is - a light take on a 'what if' situation. Hope you  guys like it. 

Have a very merry Christmas and a Happy new Year!! A suggestion: Why don't you make a resolution to comment on my posts :P

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          I was in a hurry! I had to dash out of the apartment in exactly 10 mins! I had a steaming mug of coffee in my hand, a huge collection of bills in my other, hair a mess, and was still in my bathrobe and was yet to change into the clothes I had laid out on my bed…..and I realize my deo is over! Empty! It’s something I need before I get out of the house! I will be too self conscious if I try to brave the day without my faithful deo! I have a brainwave and dash to his wardrobe and grope around in the unholy mess till my fingers clasp around the familiar cool container. I take it out and liberally spray it on myself. Ohhh! A bit strong! And a bit strange! This doesn’t smell like his usual deo..maybe he’s trying a new one… But hey! Not complaining! I’m just grateful to have a deo to use!

           After exactly 10 mins, I am dashing out of our apartment and trying to hail a taxi…unsuccessfully. I am so frustrated that I just look up at the heavens and let out a scream! To my astonishment, a taxi screeches to halt in front of me! I am really pleased and hop in. I immediately let the driver know my intended destination and relax in the backseat. I think I have dozed off for a while when suddenly I’m jolted awake by some rap music! I frown and try to tell her to cut the volume down when the lyrics hit me and God! Are they offending! Instead of reprimanding her, I just blush and am at loss for words! Especially since she’s mouthing the lyrics and watching me from her rear view mirror which I shocking note is directed towards me and not the traffic! She gives me a wink!

           I immediately ask her to stop, pay and jump out of the car without even bothering to get the change. I am still a few blocks away from office, but somehow, just can’t muster enough courage to get into another taxi..so I decide to walk the rest of the way. She really creeped me out!

          Am nearing my office when I spot Sue, the hot dog vendor.  I smile at her in relief! I am damn hungry as I’ve skipped breakfast! I walk up to her with a ‘Hello Sue! The usual please’ when she gives me a weird smile, not at all the usual friendly one she used to give me but kinda..i dunno…

Her hand lingers on mine when I am taking the hotdog from her and when I try to pay, she goes ‘Oh no no! It’s on me sugar!’ I literally run to my office!

            I frantically keep pushing the elevator buttons till one of them opens. I rush in as fast as I can. I feel a little safe inside and calm down a bit. There is a blonde in the lift who works with the packaging department. I greet her with a smile as the doors close. As the doors open, I sprint out of the lift and leaving her with a black eye! I just don’t want to narrate what happened in the damn lift!

It went on like this the whole day! I had women hitting on me left and right! Women I knew, strangers, women I hate..all of them!  And what had me flummoxed was that I knew most of them if not all…were straight as an arrow!

           I took the metro home. Just wasn’t ready to get into another taxi. I reached home to find the man frantically searching for something in his wardrobe.  In spite of my exhausting day, I am curious and walk to him and ask him what he’s searching for. He goes “My genetically enhanced spray! The one I was experimenting on! I cannot find it anywhere!!’

           I guiltily go ‘uh oh! Do you mean this?’ and hold out the container I had used in the morning. He grabs it from me and checks the contents. He then gives me a look worthy of Satan! ‘It’s empty’ he states in a deceptively calm voice. I gulp and slowly explain I had used it in the morning.

His demeanor changes in an instant! He says ‘Oh! Did you? That is great! I had thought you had thrown it away or something! But this is good!’

           I am so relieved he’s not angry anymore, I forget to ask about the spray. He’s totally excited and starts running about grabbing notes and blabbering non stop.

He makes me sit down on the sofa, brews me some coffee and after patiently letting me finish it, starts with the questions.

           It is then that I realize he’s working on a new enhanced deodorant for men. I do not get it at first but when I slowly realize the potential of this invention, I am dumbfounded! Part of me wants to congratulate my man for his invention is indeed a success!  All those cheesy deo commercials where a girl falls for a guy by merely smelling him! So tacky. But he has turned this into reality! None of the girls could help falling for me!

But then another voice in my head immediately resorted ‘but they weren’t themselves! They were forced to like you against their will!’ That got me thinking and I stopped myself from blurting out what had happed that day.

I thought about this…’Let me first analyze their behavior tomorrow and then decide how I’m going to play this’. I made up my mind and told him sweetly ‘ Why don’t we do this tomorrow evening?’ I rushed to explain when he got a bit angry and started to argue back and said ‘That way, I 'can also get you information on how potent this is! Whether its effects last more than a day!’

           That got him! More data for analysis! He nodded in agreement and started preparing the questions for me tomorrow. Whew! Am off the hook for now!

**********************************The day of reckoning ********************

When I got up the next day, I had a very clear plan in my head. I got ready and after assuring him I’d not get caught up in my work and forget the deal, I got down to the lobby and went outside. I was wondering how to get the taxi..not a taxi…but THE taxi…but I needn’t have worried...I spotted her. She had parked the car and was looking at my direction. I guess she was waiting for me! I was beginning to think this wasn’t such a great plan after all when she got out of the car and started walking towards me. I thought this was my clue to put as much distance I can between me and her and started to back off, but I came to a halt when I saw her raise her hands as if in an apology and gave me an embarrassed look.

            I stood there suspiciously, I was in a good spot. I could scream if I had to and I was just in front of my building and a lot of people would come to me if I’m in trouble. So, I stood my ground and let her approach me. She looked very sheepish and stammered an apology and told me she had a boyfriend and was straight and had absolutely no idea what came over her yesterday and said she was so sorry for having freaked me out.

           I accepted a ride to office in the very same cab which she offered to me as a token of apology. I was thinking about this all through the ride to Office. When I finally reached office, I insisted she take payment for the ride and told her everything was cool.

            I immediately walked towards Sue. She was not her normal cheerful self. She in fact looked a bit worried. When she saw me, her face drained of all color and she looked so pale! She was frightened! She just stood there looking at me and at loss for words. She handed me a note and turned away and continued her work. I read the note which apologized to me and said she was very confused and didn’t know what had come over her yesterday! She had freaked out afterwards! I told her it was no big deal and teased her for a bit. That got things back to normal and she gave me a tentative but friendly grin.

          It was the same thing at office, either they were too mortified to talk to me and avoided me totally or were profusely apologetic about yesterday.

          I was thinking about this all the way back home and had made my decision. This stupid thing had robbed away those poor women’s free will and the actions they did were because of the influence of the spray and all of them regretted it later. This thing was too dangerous! If this prototype gets out and is manufactured and sold….No! I will not let it be!

          I take a deep breath and entered the apartment. After half an hour, I had succeeded in convincing him that the deo didn't do anything extraordinary. I told him that the women kept remarking that I kind of smelt a bit weird and were a bit repelled by it. I lied to him about his work being a failure. His crestfallen face really tested my resolve but I just couldn’t let such an unjust thing happen to womenfolk! 

          I am an unsung heroine for all of womankind! Only I know the gravity of the situation that I’ve handled! Not a soul in the world is witness to this! This makes it all the more surreal.

Sunny Smile and Tempest Terrors

Hello Readers,

In this story, have tried something different. Though the key and interesting character is a woman, the power of narration is actually given to the male character, who is ordinary compared to the unconventional female protagonist. Hope you guys like it J

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He just knew it…though he couldn’t prove it..He knew he was right. That’ s alright. He’d wait. He had waited this long, hadn’t he? He could wait some more…for the right time. He had seen it too many times to doubt his theory. He was damn sure about it! But what can he do now? How does he talk to her about it when she is ignorant of the fact that she has the power..If he did talk, he would just succeed in freaking her out and driving her away from him! He didn’t want that! Not in the least! He’d rather keep his observations to himself.

He had known her for a pretty long time. They were kindergarten buddies. Now since both of them were in their early thirties, you can safely assume that they knew each other for most of their lives! It was when he was a teen that he had a hunch about it…but couldn’t understand what it was. Then, after a few years when he was in his early twenties, he first saw something that made things….well.. click! and he was able to view her in a different perspective. He still remembers it vividly, though the moment of realization was a decade back! It was her smile. Her dazzling smile! Sure, she had perfect teeth, full lips and two lovely dimples accompanied her smile every time… but it was dazzling for a totally different reason!  He couldn’t remember a single instance of her smiling when it was not sunny in the background…or to be precise, not a single moment when it didn’t turn sunny as soon as she smiled! Or a single moment when it wouldn’t rain when she was grumpy, or how the weather transformed to a glorious day when she smiled and when she laughed?! Well…the day turned magical! Yes. She had absolute control on the country’s weather! No…Not control…she was unaware of it. Her emotions where linked to her motherland’s climate! She was manipulating it without any awareness about the same! …She was the reason the seasons were so erratic in this country! It had confounded people all around the globe! This little nation just refused to follow the pattern and forecasts. But no one could complain about the unpredictable weather as the weird phenomenon had attracted people from all over the world! This relatively unpopular place had become the number one tourist destination! And of course this boosted the country’s economy. So …would it be alright if he told her she was behind all this? No! She freaks out at the drop of a hat. He has to be burdened with this secret for a little longer.

Back when he had first realized that his friend could control the weather, he had used it to his advantage whenever he could! He’d get a box of her favorite chocolates and send it to her as an unknown admirer. It’d usually work. She’d be in a good mood and the day would be sunny. He’d make sure the day went well whenever there was a game he was playing or if he had planned to take the pretty girl in his class on a date etc.. He was mean enough to upset her if he wanted the day to go bad for a lot of reasons. Yeah, He admits he was an a**hole.

But now, after all this time, he had fallen for her and how! He just couldn’t imagine being with anyone except her. It wasn’t easy to get her to like him but he eventually, he won her over. They were together since a few years and he had not tried to use her power to his benefit even once. He truly did love her now. He was extremely happy to be with her and did not mind being the secret keeper of this phenomenal fact. He vowed to himself that he’s reveal this to her only when he deemed her fit to receive this information. How wrong he was!

Things went very wrong. Though he had decided not to talk to her about this until the time was right, he did blurt it out and that too, in a very offensive way! He had been too drunk, too high to control his tongue, it wouldn’t have done the damage as much if she were stoned too, but unfortunately she was as sober as a judge

He woke up the next day with the world’s worst hangover.  It was only after he had drowned a couple of aspirins with a bottle full of water and felt the headache reside, did he have a look outside and was stunned to see that a tornado had ripped their town apart! He was lucky not to have been crushed under some debris! But he knew this would happen only when she’s petrified..but why would she be petrified? He was frowning as he was trying to add things up and then it hit him!! He realized what he had done! He panicked! He was wondering how he’d undo the damage he had done, he thought he’d blame the whole thing as a stupid drunken blabber. He was going from one room to the other in search of her and when he didn’t find her in the house, he lost it! He started screaming her name and was wildly running outside the house and onto the streets. He stopped after a couple of blocks and was at his wits end….she was gone. Any other time, he’d have concluded that she was mad at him and would come back once she cooled off. But now, he was afraid this was not the scenario. Not only was her absence disturbing him but something else was freaking him out. Ever since she had disappeared, after the terrible tornado had hit, the weather patterns were normal. This nation, her nation, was following the pattern that the rest of the world follows. It was totally normal and predictable. It was as if she wasn’t on the face of the Earth anymore. Though all logic pointed to the same fact – that she was dead, there was no conclusive proof of that and this drove him insane with the necessity to find out about his beloved.  

It had been 5 years since she disappeared from his life, and there hadn’t been a single day when the weather had misbehaved. Everything was normal. He was still trying to find her because he refused to accept she wasn’t alive. Then, he came across a traveler's blog in which the latest post talked about a far off land, totally disconnected from the external world, remote and isolated. Technology had not invaded this primitive land and hence not many knew of the place. Travelling there is a challenge and is highly risky. Tourists are shunned (not that there are many who try to visit!)  but what captured his attention and brought a spark to his lifeless eyes was this piece of information – the blogger had concluded the post by stating about the abnormal weather pattern he had experienced there!

He had finally found the light! He was right to hope all these years! He immediately started packing for the trip of a lifetime.

An Eye for an Eye… A world for a world

There she goes….a woman with a purpose. She had been preparing for this moment from eons…preparing, wondering, dreaming, fearing about it through millennia after millennia …but strangely when the time arrived, she was unexpectedly calm…maybe the calm before the storm? She was walking…no, gliding across the huge ocean with a single minded determination. Her mission was about to begin. She felt no emotion attached with what was entrusted to her by the highest authority of all.
She had watched the earth change…only she could see it among all the creatures inhibiting the one of a kind heavenly body-the humans christened Earth. She could because you need to be there for a very long time to see the change as the rate of change is immeasurably small for the pitiful life span of any living creature on the planet.
    She had observed the earth change for the worse and knew that the time was near. She had wondered all along about the unjust the entire system of life had to undergo because of a single selfish species– the Homo sapiens.
    This event was mentioned in the ancient and the first language of civilization. There was already a record of the coming events in this ancient literature though it was yet to happen! This surprised her more than anything…Perhaps the human race was more perspective than she gave them credit for.. maybe they would fare better in the next phase of time? Time will tell.
    She had hoped that the prophecy be wrong. She had hoped that mankind would slow down, stop and eventually return from the doom towards which they were heading. But it was not to be. The events unfolding were so precise, a non believer would have said that the events had happened first and the “prophecy” written later ..
    Mankind…what a strange word ..they should have been called ManUnkind. Observing them through time immemorial, she had watched with horror as they degenerated to the current state. The world in its current stage held no new borns, no infants, no toddlers, no adolescents, no teens and no elderly.

The average life span of a human was 30 years. Natural Procreation was absent. The only way of creating offsprings was to clone oneself, which only the rich could afford and many of them were not the least bit interested in creating a new life. So this was a rarity, hence population was alarming dwindling. As for the clones, they were created with their physical state equivalent to a 20 year old and had all the knowledge, mannerisms, fetish, etc…of their creators. So, life in a nutshell was: born as a 20 year old and have a life for 10 years. 
    When things reached this state, she knew that what needed to be done was to be done. And done be her alone. Her resolve hardened.
    She had reached the destined location. Now she had to summon the elements to her will, which was what she was born to do. This would be the final phase of time. Everything would go back as it was before time was time and she played the pivotal role in this. It was as written that this phase would be the worst of all and when evil reached it’s peak…then would be the time for her to act…it would be the End-of –the-world. Or she preferred to think of it as a “cleansing” rather than the end of something.
    She closes her mind on all trivial things she was thinking until this moment and loses herself completely to focus on the point she stands and starts to manipulate environmental factors so that they disobey the laws of physics…and so..it begins…
    A lighting flash so dazzling, it should have blinded her but doesn’t,  lights up the entire sky…and as if guided by her…concentrates into a line of brilliance and lands directly at her feet.
    An colossal wave raises from the point and splits into four …each travelling towards a different direction.. each second growing larger…the sky turns a frightening black..it’s as if the sun has disappeared!…She knows once the waves hit the shores, they will not stop there…they will continue their journey till the four mighty waves meet again and reunite… engulfing all in there path. They could do that because they weren’t just monstrous waves..they had the power of antimatter infused in them… ….thus giving them the power to annihilate everything… marine life, airborne creatures and land dwellers… It was a matter a few minutes and it was all over. She levitates to a much higher position and watches the new world sans any form of life.. she watches it with awe…the world she helped create….It all seemed so fast…her purpose is served. The moment she realizes this, another brilliant flash of light hits her directly and she vaporizes…becoming a single celled organism…  the only life form on the planet..the foundation of evolution to come.

Magical reality

It all began on that fateful day when I had come home feeling so damn depressed. I was depressed with almost everything in my life.. am not exaggerating. Tell me the most important aspect of an individual’s life in a very broad sense.. Family, Financial Security, Friends, Spiritual well being to name a few right? Well…let me bemoan about the state of my life at that point of time:

I was estranged from my mom/single parent as a result of a very nasty verbal spat which (I am ashamed to say) happened three years ago, so there’s family…

I was fired from my job as a result of the recession and was booted out with 3 months pay and some (lip) sympathies, there’s financial security…

I never had a real friend as long as I could remember. … so there go Friends….

I was, from as long back as I remember, a Person with very poor self esteem. I also used to end up feeling guilty for every small and silly thing. Yeah, I had a season’s pass for life to the Guilt Trip special!
That’s spiritual well being?!

So Family, Money, Friends, Spiritual well being? Hey, not for me! Throw them straight outside the window! Sigh! So…now do u agree with my statement? “Am Mega Depressed”.

So what? Why am I narrating a story about it? There are lot of people who get depressed…and what would happen next? Its easier to guess than the ending of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai! So, what is the bloody point of this story when the ending is everybody’s guess!
Ending 1: They would become some sort of addicts!
Ending 2: They would turn into Psychopaths!
Ending 3: The lucky ones would get support and encouragement from family/friends and snap out of it!

Well.. the bloody point is…the ending is NOT, I repeat NOT any of the above…hell forget the above, its not even in your wildest imagination!

Now that I have your attention (with a little skepticism no doubt), lets proceed with the story.

I was lying on my bed in my dimly lit room, staring at the ceiling, I could hear the song “all by myself ” floating from my neighbour’s home (The irony of it!).….I was feeling very disturbed, felt like a hundred different things were going on in my head and none of them pleasant. My feeling of melancholy was increasing by the second and my face was screwed up with the effort of not wanting to …..I don’t know what..maybe cry? Kill myself? Or Kill some one else more like? I thought I was about to reach the limit of my sanity and was getting a bit alarmed that once I do, my brain would cave in and collapse…..still, I couldn’t control my emotions and I felt myself nearing that limit…and finally reach it…….

AND……….?

I started to calm down…..(I know, sort of a letdown!) and after a few minutes I tried to interpret the feeling ..and crazily, I felt that she was soothing me….but she??? Why did I think it was a girl? Why did I think some one was even there?!! Or maybe I hadn’t calmed down at all! Maybe I was insane! So.. this is how it felt to be insane!

I was confused and scared out of my wits, so I did the best thing that any person would do when they are scared (but no one ever admits this)…. switched on all the lights in my room…The bright lights gave me a bit of courage but then I heard a voice… “OK Drama Queen! Settle down!” My poor heart almost stopped. My first logical reaction was…maybe it’s the TV..but then I realized mine had conked the day before! Then where did the voice….?! I stammered “H..H..Hello?”

“I am right here! Turn to your right!” she said …I turned so swiftly, I craned my neck in the process. I was rubbing my neck and staring at the wall in my bedroom. I dint see anything there ..just a painting I had done long ago and some smudges of coffee I has spilled yesterday…Then I heard her again..”Are you blind? Cant you see how nicely my complexion contrasts your boring white wall??” It took a few seconds for me to realize….

My goddamn shadow????

I immediately had a mental image of some TV show crew setting this up and catching the reaction of the Bakra through hidden cameras…I snorted “this is obviously a gag!”. She replied “ Oh! Yeah? I can prove it!” and then I witnessed something that made me piss in my pajamas!

I was standing in front of the wall frozen like a statue while my shadow waves at me! And did a small sing-and-dance routine! I fainted.

I woke up to find myself on the floor, reeking of piss and my shadow asking me was I ok… I ran to the bathroom screaming like a maniac….I fumbled through my medicine cabinet searching frantically for something…anything.. that would rid me of this…insanity? hallucination? I was just about to pop some pills into my mouth when she warns “uh..huh…I don’t think that’s a good idea!”

I closed my eyes and started chanting to myself, sotto voice “None of this is real”.. but then, my self brain washing was being interrupted by a voice “Of Course it is! The sooner you start believing it, the better for you.”

I just couldn’t decide what to do….and ended up crying. She was silent the whole time I was sobbing into my towel. By the time my tears had stopped and my eyes had swollen to twice their normal size and turned blood red, I lifted my head out of the tear socked towel and had a peek at…her…. But my shadow seemed just that…..a shadow…..she was in the exact same position I was, holding the shadow of the towel in my hand. I was about to conclude the whole thing as a dream…when my attention was drawn towards my bathroom mirror…. She had left me a note! My mirror announced in bright red letters “Will talk to you tomorrow…Please don’t be such a baby about this!”

After an answer to an untimely nature’s call (will explain about this later….kinda embarrassing!), a quick shower and a change of pajamas, I was in bed…I was so freaked out that I couldn’t sleep so ended up in my balcony. I was gazing at the stars above with the background music “Mad world”, courtesy My Neighbour. That seemed so..so.. appropriate for the moment!

I got up quite late in the morning…Its usually after a mug of steaming hot coffee that my system would be up and running, but today I was suddenly jolted to full consciousness when my brain started playing yesterday’s unusual…er…phenomena… I was wide awake and as alert as can be without my first life giving cup of the day!

I ran to the bathroom, not because nature called, but due to the fact that nature was screaming! Regarding the nature’s call I had said I’d be explaining later…well, here goes…It’s a weird thing! Every time I’m s**t scared, I literally S**t! Yeah! That’s true! It happens to some people! After I’d done my thing, had a cup of steaming hot coffee, took a long shower and was about to step out when I noticed the message on the mirror. I didn’t let that upset me. I just took a deep breath and started distracting myself by thinking on what to do the whole day, as I was job-less at the moment. I gobbled down some breakfast and was off to the library near my home. I selected a few books on paranormal activities and settled myself in one of the corner desk.

I came home late in the evening a bit disappointed. I couldn’t find a single mention on shadows in the books. After dinner I decided to watch a movie.

I Was just about to put on a CD (” The Mask”, I never get tired of watching this!), when suddenly, I heard her! “OK Now! We’re gonna talk! So you can put that CD away!” My hands, which were in the process of pushing the “eject” button on the player, froze. I dunno for how long I maintained that pose but thought it was long enough when she started giggling. I retrieved my hand back, prayed for strength and turned towards my shadow…

But my shadow was…Normal! I was a bit confused.. Then I heard her again:

Spooky Shadow: “ No. I’m not your shadow. I’m actually a witch. I thought you might get scared to see a real witch, so had enchanted your shadow yesterday.”

Me: “Yeah, Right! A taking shadow wouldn’t scare me at all!!”

Witch(?) : “Oh! Sarcasm! That’s much better than…let me see…pajamas socked in piss?”

Me(blushing): “I feel stupid talking to thin air! Why can’t I see you, witch? ”

Witch: “ Witch?? I have a name..and It’d be appropriate if you address me by it! It’s Maleficent”

Me(laughing): “What?! Maleficent?? You are named after a famous Disney villain?? That’s real scary!! ”

Maleficent: “Ha Ha… I’ll make myself visible to you now….try not to scream”

Me: Gulp!

(Maleficent pops out of thin air and I gasp! She’s a bit scary. No..she isn’t ugly..far from it, she is a beauty but there is a sense of power about her that just took my breath away. With a superhuman effort, I control the urge to run away)

Maleficent: “Hmm…not bad. Some have even fainted ”

Me: “Your lot…they get acquainted with the likes of us??”

Maleficent: “Yes. We do when the need arises”

Me: “But why don’t we hear anything about this?”

Maleficent: “My! And here I had almost thought of you as girl with a bit of common sense! Would you go around telling people you’ve just met a witch…hmmm? ”

Me: “Oh! Go the point….stay mum or join the asylum..”

Maleficent: “OK Then! Lets get to the point… I, Maleficent the wise, am a member of the high council. It’s our job to reach out to humans in need. But we do so only to the pure of heart. I am here to guide you through this tough time in your life. Do you accept?”

Me: “?????? ”

Maleficent: “Well …? Aren’t you gonna say something? You’ll have to answer in affirmative for me to proceed….protocol you see.. ”

Me: “err…..yippee??”

Maleficent(smiling): “that’ll work.”

I was still in a state of stunned disbelief when she walked gracefully across the hall and sat on my sofa. As she arched one of her eyebrows questioningly, I realized I was still gaping at her, with a huge effort I recomposed my face and sat on the chair next to hers ..err, to be honest, it was the one opposite to hers…alright! Diagonally opposite!! Yes! Was still a bit scared of her! But as she started taking, I felt myself getting calmer by the second and also began to like this formidable female! Once I had gotten over the initial shock and the situation sunk in to my head, she suggested that we would commence the sessions by tomorrow.

That night I was curiously going through the probable way in which she’d help me. A magical incarnation? A potion? Some hocus pocus these witches do? Some spell that goes “boil and bubble toil and trouble”?? I sprinted to my desk and started to make a list when I heard the song “There’s magic in the air” and no prizes for guessing from where! Yes! My neighbour!

Well, I was totally off the mark. She offered me none of the above. She offered me Advice.
I was a bit disappointed because I thought it would need something extraordinary to set my life right. But my disappointment turned to delight as I started to seriously consider her advice and work on it. Things really started to fall into place!

I swallowed my fear/ego and rang up my mom. She was a bit stiff in the beginning but this conversation gradually swelled to more calls and finally we started meeting. I am happy to say we have reconciled and are really thrilled to be in each other’s lives. The other day we were at my place talking and gorging on some great P&B sandwiches when we heard the song “Mama, I love you” form next door. Right on!

Self-confidence. She explained that too less would make me a wuss and too much, a contemptuous ass. “Self confidence should boarder at arrogance to be just right.” she’d declared! It was really difficult at first but slowly I started being more confident about myself. I, who used to sweat at the thought of attending interviews, breezed through them with a finesse I’d never thought possible. Needless to say, within a few weeks, I landed with a great job! I got myself to a new outfit and had invited my mom over for a wonderful dinner. We were treated to the song “Strength of a woman” from my next-door-jukebox as we celebrated.

She taught me how to choose friends. An art most of us lack but are woefully unaware of the sad fact! I have two friends now. One, a colleague and the other a childhood friend long forgotten. I have a feeling this budding friendship will get stronger with time and go a long way. I had them over at my place one night for a pajama party. We were in the middle of a pillow fight and I thought I heard the faint notes of “I’ll be there for you” from somewhere.

She told me never to let go of my hobby…painting. She said each one of us have a special something, an extra gift that would make us unique. The trouble is many would never realize what it is but there are a few lucky ones who do realize it and build on the same. She said It'd be really tragic if they let go of it.I started painting again and the joy! I cannot describe it!

She bid me goodbye yesterday stating that her mission was accomplished. I was a bit sad to see her go but I was really thankful for the way things had turned out for me. I had no specific plans for the day and ended up painting.

I heard the song “It’s a wonderful wold” as I painted and couldn’t help but feel so at peace. It was then that I realized that my neighbour had been like a background music to the different scenes of my life’s play! Though it seemed preposterous at first, the more I thought about it, the surer I was. This was an astonishing coincidence! I was pretty sure this was a sign and literally ran to the balcony to have a look.

I was peering shamelessly into my next-door’s window when I was taken aback to find a curious pair of eyes staring back at me! I lost my nerve and was about to rush back inside when he came rushing out to his balcony. Suddenly, I couldn’t move or think. I was rooted to the spot. I don’t know if I can describe it right or do justice for the feeling with words. I felt that I had found my soul mate in this curly haired chocolate boy and by the awestruck look he was giving me, I’d say, the emotion was mutual!

Wings on my Shoulders

Look! Just look at that! Isn't it pretty? Mother earth sure is a lovely thing. Sigh...The oceans look so lovely from space don't you think? I think you are wondering who can this be who’s talking about a point of view only astronauts or ET s have experienced. Ha! Ha! FYI...I'm neither...oh! Wait.... before the thought comes to your mind, I'm neither a couch potato watching the world through the idiot box! Any more guesses? Give up? ... am an angel.

Yup! The real thing with a halo and wings! It’s not such a big deal you know. When I first got my wings I was so excited as wings are something absolutely new to flightless humans. My initial reaction was...Yahoo! I have wings! I can fly! I was on the 9^th cloud (In my case literally because I bunk in cloud #009!) But after a while you just get used to the whole thing! You know...It's just like having an arm or a leg...they are very important for you to function but you never realize it, right? The halo? Well....I couldn’t sleep for a few days because I can't switch off the halo! It’s always bright and I need total darkness when I go to bed. After the third day of sleepless night, one of my fellow angels, an older and a much wiser one suggested that I use one of the night masks, you know a black mask for your eyes... worked like a charm! You know what, I died a month back. Yeah! You heard me right! Was later deemed a good soul by a committee of “Fate churners” and went through some formalities and then...boom! Am an apprentice angel! I am still getting used to being one! The other day, I was painting something (Am an artist) and because of my carelessness, spilled the entire bottle of paint on Annie's wings!! Boy! Was she mad! I had a tough time washing her wings you know and it didn't help that she was grumbling and muttering all the while. I am flying properly nowadays...It’s not the flying but the landing that’s extremely difficult. I say this because I've done some pretty disastrous ones myself! I'm getting the hang of it now but am no where near the graceful landings of others but am learning.

Life up here is pretty good! Excellent food, Exquisite lifestyle and I don't mean living like the filthy rich! What I mean is that we live as a colony, there's no personal gain in anything, everything is free! There's nothing called money here. People just do their work and are waiting for others to take their wares or use their services. I display my paintings in the market every other week. If someone likes them, they just pick it up. George the baker bakes some of the finest pastries and anyone can just walk in and gobble whatever they want! Its the same with everything, be it clothes, Hotels, parlors, cabs, you name it. Everyone works and they get satisfaction in return. We all live in harmony. There's no one who’s rich or poor, beautiful or ugly...all are equal. Once you enter these gates as an angel, you will have a heart of gold that knows no evil, no jealousy, no sorrow. Anger? Yes. A bit. We do get angry when the ones for whom we're the guardians are up to no good. We sometimes get angry with each other but nothing ever goes out of hand, after bickering for a while, things are back to normal but it is not the same with teen angles(TAs)...Sigh! They have a long way to go and a lot to learn. They take a lot more time to get adjusted here. By the time they do get adjusted, they are no longer teens! The other day, I saw two TAs being dragged along by one of the older lot. It was quite apparent that the two of them were fighting! You should have seen the halo of one of them! It looked kinda like a amoeba! The half of the other's wing had no feathers! I pity the guys working in the amendment department. They are called the 'Set Righters'. The TAs see to that these guys work round the clock!

Once our lives as humans come to an end on mother earth, many of us serve the Lord as Angels. We angels act as guardians to many human lives. Once our role as an angel ends, we join the lord himself. I still have a long way to go before I attain the ultimate salvation.