Round The Bend!!!
Lost in the soft soothing sounds of an instrumental piece playing in the background, Mark sat lazing comfortably, inside the Seven Stars. The opulence and the radiance of wealth was splattered everywhere. But the loony streak in him was baffled up with the
happenings of his recent presentation. This time the cafeteria in Latte was failing to bring out the right caffeine impact & in spite of all sumptuousness lavishes, tension was getting high onto his nerves. Right in front was Ethen, his wife. But the uneasy calm
still prevailed.
Suddenly a voice distracted his thoughts,
“You bastard… spoiled my brand new shoes. Who the bloody hell is going to pay for the damage? Your dad???”
The hot caffeine was lying spilled all over the place. A rich young lad was shouting at the poor bewildered waiter. The big place, it’s tempting richness provides no solace because of inhumane behavior. He felt like the whole world had gone insane.
‘Mad Man. That Mad Man Don’t hurt him”.
Mark was muttering. It seemed like he was reminded of someone or something…probably someone who held a place of importance for him.
Ethen couldn’t stop herself and finally ended up querying him.
Mark replied obscurely
“Once…in childhood…while playing with friends on the road…there came, a man with beard who stared us for no reason. He stood reluctantly, meekly and did not act upon. He just watched us play. His white clothes were tattered at places… had infinite
number of dark and dull and deep spots….His uncanny looks!! With a swelled face and unkempt hair he looked as if he was pretending to be a moron. But from nowhere a wild thought struck us and we started stoning the person. It was a fun for us to watch
him act strangely….folding hands and try to save himself but not once did he throw a stone back at us.’
Mark took a deep breath and sipped his coffee in a mechanical fashion. Expressions certainly conveyed that this time his coffee sip was refreshing. He gazed at Ethens. But alas the lady was still lost in the world she was brought in by Mark.
A hard shake and Ethens was back to her senses.
‘I know….I know all…I know everything…That…That mad
man…mad you…Like always…you troubled…You troubled
him….poor guy!! Now just go on….go on…and tell all.’ Ethens
shouted.
And Mark continued,
‘Later the same night while heading homewards from the jogging rounds, I saw someone occupying a small space on the footpath. An anonymous strange man with a derelict sack as his only wonderful asset, slept very comfortably alongside with a stray dog
resting at a foot’s distance from him. I didn’t like what I saw and strangely it did not allow me to sleep that night. Later the next morning, I went to the same place but spotted no one there.
On asking about the person, people called him- the mad man. I was astonished.
Finally an old person told something about that old man.
I was told that he, stoned by people like us, was once a normal boy. He belonged to a poor family. His father…a habitual and compulsive drunkard used to beat him and his mother very badly. The lust … for booze and money…and the man sold his wife and
son to the goons. They raped his mother right in front of his eyes and finally killed
her. The teen boy was not spared. He was made to serve as a male prostitute. They played foul with him and tormented him to the worst possible. It crossed all limits when they inflicted burns on his private parts with cigarettes. Since then he went mad and lives like
this. People now thrash him badly, they stone him, they call him an evil spirit and do all what one can in the most inhuman way. Not a single soul has taken pity on him but yes they watch him being tormented with sadistic pleasure. The world has betrayed him but
someone up there sent a dog who actually makes his family.’
Mark stopped….
He heard some sobbing sound…
‘Ethens!!!! Oh my God!!! What has happened???
Stop Dear!!! Please!!! Don’t…Please!!!
He noticed her eyes…the wet eyes…the wet reddened eyes…that
were still streaming out some precious droplets…
Mark couldn’t stop himself this time…And a few tears trickled
down his cheeks.
Sudden instincts of manly behavior of controlling the emotions,
and he….
He….then struggled hard to sip the coffee down his pipes but……
‘Marshal!! Yes as he used to call his dog. I was then told that this mad man, whatever he gets shares it half with Marshal. If He would get a snack, half he would eat and the rest would go to him. Water, that also was shared well. Even while sleeping, the man used to clean the space and then this family would sleep over there. This mad man and his stray never harmed anyone but the so called educated, sensitive, sophisticated but cruel world harmed them every instant…
Even that meek dog, served him well .Marshal would go along with him everywhere. If anyone dare even touch the man in his presence, Marshal would ferociously protect him.
But this cruel world…the poor man…and the faithful dog!!!!’
Mark was astounded by the number of emotions swirling inside him. Ethens was still all tears.
Before a change took place Mark whispered to Ethens,
‘The mad man was certainly not strange but just someone
different…..
He and Marshal….both meek…but more humane then the normal
humans around….
He was a man poor, but still richer and happier than the ones
standing in Seven stars….’
Mark looked around at the waiter cleaning, gazed at himself in the vintage mirror hanging but just couldn’t sip the last sip of the coffee, for something had badly distressed his mind and the food pipe.
He took the weeping lady and just moved out of the lavish zones onto the beautiful footpaths…
Struggling deep for breathe he thought,
Was he really round the bend or ……?????
Vote for me now!
Vista-Rill 