All I could see apart from the airport, which looked like a makeshift version of an overnight constructed luggage carousel, was the rain soaking every bit of earth it could see, while dampening every inch of whatever zeal I had left from the shortest flight I ever had.
If you noticed the unnecessarily long and dragging single sentence, that's how the first day felt to me. Anyway, let's start from the start.
The sun was on the verge of setting down. As I waited for the cab that would drive me to the small town where I was headed, I called a friend. The usual greetings later, I told (complained mildly) that it was raining. Heavily. Continuously. The reply was yes. I was as perplexed as you probably feel now.
They elaborated further, saying that upon asking around about that place to people who had been there before, they heard that it rains there almost every day...round the year. Every nerve in my body must have witnessed an unnerving malfunction upon hearing that.
I could just think... what? All throughout the year? You can't be serious. And I am here, almost committing two years of my life to this place!
Despite every fit I should have thrown, despite every resistance I should have shown, despite the small voices in my head asking me to take the next flight back home, my body moved towards the cab...like clockwork. I was heading towards that small university town... the very one that I wanted to run away from even before arriving there.
The hotel I stayed in, the mountainous roads, and the drenched green trees in that town were asking me if I was really going through the admission process that was scheduled the next day. And then among contemplations of various kinds and forms, the day, or whatever was left of it, ended.
Early in the morning the next day, I decided to just check the campus and if still I couldn't find anything that I find agreeable, I would not join the university. After a while of looking around, as I was going towards the waiting room, I thought (was I thinking or was it something else?)...
almost every student here has a fractured limb. Probably because of the treacherous roads. The rains were not making it any safer. I must be careful in these two years not to break any bone.
What? When did I decide that I was going to stay the 2 years here? Was it some kind of indication? And just like that...abruptly... I knew I was going to stay. And I did.
Every day was passing by fast. And slow. And every night I would thank the universe for letting me survive another day without a broken bone. I changed my footwear too. I gave up on any and every kind of heeled footwear and chose the safest ones. I counted each step more carefully than I had ever done. I alloted an additional 10 minutes than it was actually needed to walk from the classrooms to the hostel rooms.
Whenever I wandered on the streets, even though I wasn't mindful of my thoughts and my existence, I was mindful of my steps. And a semester ended - the first one. I was ecstatic to go home and exhilarated to stop worrying about broken bones for a month.
The night before leaving for home I received a text from a friend asking me if my semester was fine. We chatted for a bit over text...about plans for the vacation, my flight timings the next day, their university's semester schedule, their travel destinations, and the like.
When asked about the top 3 things that I was looking forward to during that vacation, I remember excitedly replying : not having to worry about broken bones, not having to wake up that early, and being able to sleep early. Yes. That was my list... I didn't realize it then and not even for the next few years. The reply I received for that list was in the form of a combination of laughing and wondering emoticons.
Anyway, they wished me the best for the last few hours in that place before vacations and I went off to sleep. The next morning, thankfully, was a sunny day. I took a cab to the airport, happily if I may add.
Just before boarding, my friend again texted me to wish me a safe journey and to take care. Not TC or a a shortened version or a sentence without the ending punctuation. Take Care. With the period punctuation. Those were the last two words, ever, in that chat window.
I survived. I survived the next 3 semesters. Without a broken bone in my body. I was careful enough... more than enough perhaps. Even though I was aware of the 'broken bone theory', I perhaps never took it seriously and I am not sure if I still do. Perhaps, I overlooked it without even realizing.
The rains in that place washed away that realization... perhaps. Even though it didn't rain everyday as my friend had mentioned, but it did for most part of the year. And that was sufficient enough to wash away many things that I held dear. And...
It took me years to realize where the broken bones really were.
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A Little Something:
1. This is a fictional story written from a first person perspective.
2. The 'Broken Bone Theory', which can be considered an urban myth, suggests that if a person has never had a broken bone in their life, they may face duress/challenge in their emotional or spiritual aspects of life which will be similar to the physical pain of a broken bone.
3. In this story, the protagonist was busy in avoiding the physical pain of a broken bone/fracture, but had to undergo a similar (or perhaps more) pain emotionally, the pain of losing a friend being one of the many aspects. Just like physical pain sometimes numbs the body (if it is too much to bear), emotional pain too can numb an individual to an extent where they don't realize the extent of the loss and pain.
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