WSPI-2012-03: DECEPTIVE APPEARANCE – Family Short Story
This short story is participating in Write Story from Picture India 2012 – Short Story Writing Competition.
WSPI-2012-03: DECEPTIVE APPEARANCE - Family Short Story
[DECEPTIVE APPEARANCE – Family Short Story]
On my way back home to Kandawad, I got the news that he had won the International sculptors award. I was flooded with congratulatory messages and was urged by newspapers to write something on him.
~~~
“THAT WAS IT”. I couldn’t bear the dreadful pain anymore. My heartbeats were going in sync with the devices around me and the doctors were getting ready for the operation. I had the option to terminate them but just couldn’t. Suddenly, the doctors put on a chloroformed mask on my face and the sounds became feeble, feeble and even feebler…..
After some time, when I woke up, I could clearly see the red swollen eyes of my family members. I requested the nurse to let me see my babies, who were twins and she said that they were kept in the incubator for them to survive as I had delivered babies who were 1 in every 10,000. They were conjoined twins whose heads were joined. I went into a state of shock and was broken into pieces. I blamed god and the bad evil in my body took over the good. Somehow, I went to see them but the mystic innocent calmness on their face broke my inside devil. I became determined to give them all needs of life.
After spending two months in the incubator, they were released from the hospital. When we came out of the hospital, I could see the stampede like situation for seeing the babies and journalists trying to click snaps. We left the place to go to our village Kandawad, very irritated and annoyed. There, at the village, the villagers started blaming me for doing the shameful deed I had done. The children of the village were restricted from coming in contact of my evil shadow. “MONSTERS ,MONSTERS” were the echoes all around me. All this just made me very depressed. From the next day, I was perceived as a bad omen and denied access to local shops and temples. People mistook them to be monsters under the face of humans but I knew they were humans under the face of monsters. People considered them to be weak and fragile as they couldn’t stand or walk properly .they behaved in a weird manner as they could not cope up with their surrounding. Being a single mother, I couldn’t afford to live in cities and I had to face it alone but was ready to do anything for them.
~~~
As our village was famous for its pottery, the masks of monsters became a rage and people started putting it outside their houses to protect the evil shadow of my children. Wherever we went, people mocked at us, calling them “MONSTERS”. The echo of people calling “monsters” just left me broken of any hope and sunken
Two years passed by and the situation worsened. Whenever they tried to walk, people would laugh and make comments at them and would vehemently oppose that they were like normal beings. My babies cried and asked me why they were different and I had no answer but saying that they were unique.
After some days, I got the news that doctors must do a huge surgery to save either one or both of them. The news was sensationalized and I was trapped without a choice.
The operation happened and I knew that they would be feeling the same pain I felt but perhaps, god wasn’t listening. I was told that the younger one, Ajay was saved but they couldn’t save Vijay. The thought of suicide came to my mind but I had to live for Ajay. I believed that god wanted to give him a better life.
Today, when I hear anyone talking about Ajay’s success and craftsmanship, I remember how actually was he perceived at his birth and was judged by his deceptive looks. From monster to master, he has come a long way but both I and he knows, who is he really holds his hand in all trials and tribulations. He is Vijay, whose shock of death made him overcome the challenges of life. Irreversible Circumstances may be averse but it’s all in your vision to perceive it…
-ALIVA DAS MOHAPATRA
