I was relieved on
realising that those bags did not belong to her. Which means she wasn’t going
anywhere. With that good feeling, I held onto avva and slept peacefully. The
next morning, I woke up to something very heart breaking. I was alone in my
bed. Avva had disappeared and so had the bags.
Maybe she went to the
railway station to see off my uncle. Maybe she went for a morning walk while my
uncle left on his work related trip. I was still unsure. I tried having a
discussion with people at home but nobody bothered explaining the 5-year-old.
But by evening, I had
clarity. Avva was travelling to Kaashi with her brother and his wife. My heart sank and all I
did was have a countdown for the 14 days. I was all eyes for her arrival.
A couple of years later, I identified a trend. She travelled somewhere every October or November.
She takes a trip each year! Wow!
And she smartly booked
early morning train tickets so she could get away with my crying and “no! you
cannot leave me and go!” warnings.
Though this was hard on me, she always made it worth
it. She always bought me pretty frocks, dresses and a
few extra toys. As the last one of all grand children, I had that privilege.
And as a December born,
clothes from Gaya, UP, Kashmir, Darjeeling and Kanyakumari is what I wore on my
birthdays.
20 years later, while I
pack my bags or sort my tickets, she cannot help but say few things…
“Don’t miss having a
meal at the Langar. And eat the halwa too. It’ll be piping hot. The Golden
temple is beautiful. I’ve gone there”
“Kasol? What is that? I’ve
just gone to Shimla in Himachal. Take a lot of warm clothes and go”
“You remember your red
birthday frock with checks? I got it from Darjeeling only. I paid 280 bucks. Go
have fun, it’s a nice place”
“I had gone to Pondicherry
with your grand father. We sat on the beach and ate chenna. Just 1 rupee back
then” she laughs
Her tips are as
precious as her.
My grand dad was not a
lover of travelling. So she chose to leave him back and go on her own. She
travelled with different groups and she has stories to share. Now I know why I love
travelling the way I do.
Basically, we are all
people made of other people. And I am proudly my avva.
