The courage

The courage

Sahil was standing near his window, down in the mouth. He was gazing out of the window at the road which was wrapped in the coat of silence. You won’t believe, this only road which Sahil was looking at sadly once used to be the centre of what we call loud noises. He clearly remembers even during his board exams when he didn’t step out of home for nearly one month, this road used to be full of cars, people out for a walk and little children cycling but now it wasn’t even the shadow of its former self.

“Total eighteen thousand cases, in one day seven hundred people have been found corona positive!.” Said the anchor from the news. His father was watching the news in the same room where Sahil was. This news moved him, if the cases keep increasing like this god knows how much lockdown may get extended. He turned his eyes off the road and sat beside his father. His father ran his fingers through Sahil’s hair. “Papa, will lockdown get extended?” he asked. His father raised his eyebrows and then looked at him and said “Don’t know son. Corona has brought the world into a standstill! No one knows for how much time this standstill will live.”.

The servant’s quarter of 172/2 ANC, that was their address. The gate of the Air force station Agra has been sealed since Lockdown 1. For boys like Sahil, this was a great change. His father who used to be at home only at weekends was now there all the time. Sometimes he used to be out for work and used to come late and sometimes his friends asked him to accompany him for drinks, he got late because of it too. 

“Smoking, drinking and all the debauchery, they increase the danger of Coronavirus!” the anchor was incessantly saying this line, so many that it got fixed in Sahil’s brain. “Oh thank gosh! It has been fifteen days since father has consumed a drop of liquor, this lockdown has proved to be beneficial too! Smoking, all the packets are finished, canteens are closed, gates are closed. Good!” he thought. “The labour’s life has become a hell, barefoot they are walking on roads scorching with heat. Some have scars, and some have left red scars on road!” said a new female anchor. She showed the red footprints on road by zooming in. Sahil could feel his eyes welling up. “God please be with them! Take care that their courage heels all their wounds!” he wished. 

“Sahil! In the evening from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm, walking has been allowed, just go and have fresh air but remember your mask should be on your mouth all the time, not even a little budging of the mask will be accepted, if you can cycle alone, do it, or take only one friend and !” he said with more force “Maintain distance!”. Sahil listened to his father attentively. 

Lockdown changed everything, the world, the nation and the air force station too. Same rules were followed, every evening, a cab came from the security office and a song was played, to prevent people from taking tension “Come on lets together defeat Corona!” this was the song’s lyrics. Its music was good. Some servant’s kids used to start dancing to this. It used to be difficult for Sahil to control his laughter at that time. Sahil felt good because now he had more time to spend with his family. Schools were closed, for the first fifteen days it was fun but later he, at last, started missing them. “I miss my teachers, it’s true no matter how much you hate school for some reasons, but you, at last, have a very strange and happy sort of connection with it, you miss it” he used to always think. “The virus which changed the world, its name is Corona! Indian people say no need to fear it !” people used to upload such statues. One day he was reading his English book, then suddenly Ganesh, his friend came and stood in front of him. Seeing him he got shocked, what was Ganesh doing here, its afternoon, no one is allowed step outside. Only 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm, we can walk out only then. “Ganesh what are you doing here!?!” his eyes bulged at something “ Where is your mask????!!!”. “Mask! Huh! Who cares!” Ganesh said. For some moment Sahil felt to grab and beat Ganesh. Outside the whole world is struggling and he doesn’t care!??. He wished the security guards to come on the spot and arrest him. Sahil was wearing his mask. “Sahil! Take it off! Enough! Here is safe!” he tried to remove his mask, Sahil resisted.

“What are you doing?” a heavy voice filled with strictness came from behind. Sahil and Ganesh froze. When they looked behind, they wished they had wings, so that they could fly away and escape their fate. A man dressed in uniform was there, his face was replete with anger, eyebrows frowning. They felt like a God Yama(The god of death) has come there to punish them. He came and slapped Ganesh. “While the whole world is fighting with Coronavirus, you don’t feel shame in wandering without wearing your mask! What are you doing outside your home? Don’t you know the rules? If you are this much passionate about staying out, fine! I will throw you out of this station, there are many who wants to roam and become corona carriers!” he shouted. Ganesh was seething in anger after that. He was about to answer back but Sahil stopped him. Sahil cleared his throat and said “Sir, we are sorry, he came here without my permission to meet me, but please forgive him, he is not taking things seriously. I ensure you, he will, you will never again see him without a mask, and why wander! Wandering is not allowed. He will stay home quietly.” The officer’s anger subsided. He looked over at Ganesh, “Came to meet him for fun, at least learn something from your friend! He hasn’t slid his mask down even while talking. Go away!” Ganesh ran like a rat runs when he accidentally steps in the sight of a cat. The officer praised “At least you have manners, good! But please take care he, not only him, any of your friends shouldn’t come here.” Before turning, Sahil called him “Sir, please wait!” the officer stopped. Sahil went inside and came out with a bottle of sanitizer, “Your hands seem dirty, please clean them.” The officer first felt that Sahil was trying to say to him “What do you think of yourself? Go! You are not white as milk!” but then he thought “If he wanted so he would have made fun of me by saying to all the people here behind my back “That officer who was reprimanding us for not wearing the mask was having dirty hands!”, but he went in and brought the sanitizer, couldn’t expect to meet such a smart minded person in the servant quarter block.” He thought. The officer smiled, praised him and left.

[2]

“Wait! What are you saying ? You told that officer to wash hands because they were dirty? Now you are gone.” Said Nikhil. It was evening, time was 6:00 pm, they were going to Ganesh’s house not to play but to give him masks, as he had none, his mother was managing with shawls. Sahil’s mother had stitched them. They were near the badminton court of the map area. Sahil was holding a bunch of masks .“Why I am gone?” he asked. Nikhil feared the security guards very much. “How can we command someone so much elder to us!” “I only asked him to wash his hands, I did well to him after all.” Nikhil was still not convinced. “You have this very bad habit, we are the sons of the ones who work as servants here, we can tell or advise, umm.., See there, Rohan Chaha! Not Group Captains!!’ Sahil was going to answer then suddenly they saw two people walking from the opposite end of the road. When they tried to know who they were, they became open-mouthed. “Group captain Ram Shrivastav and his wife.” Nikhil went shivering. Sahil came out of the shock in some minutes but a minutes later, noticed something which transported him to more intense shock. Mr.Shrivastav and his wife weren’t wearing masks!. “How can they?” In Sahil’s mind, a plan was getting created, but suddenly someone pulled him back. “Come on, let’s go no need, Ganesh will manage.” Nikhil wanted to take Sahil away as he knew his next step. He succeeded in taking him to the other edge. “They are not wearing masks! We have to tell them!” “Are you mad!” Nikhil said as if someone had asked him to enter a dragon’s cage. “He is the group captain! And oh! Here is the van, it will take care of them, let’s go! Don’t be stupid Sahil, please don’t!” he turned. “Wait !” Sahil stopped him. “I will go only when they stop them and ask them to wear masks.” Nikhil didn’t want to stay but he did. The cab came closer, it stopped. Sahil smiled, later after some seconds, it grew closer and closer. The same music was getting played. “Lets defeat corona together!”. “Now they would come out!” But the cab went ahead leaving Mr.Shrivastav and his wife behind, it was sure that they also lost the courage to tell command such a senior officer. Sahil couldn’t control himself, he felt as some police let a criminal go off his hands right in front of his eyes. The criminal word would be felt wrong but, not wearing the mask and walking carelessly is the biggest crime we can do right now in 2020!” he ran and stood in front of Mr.Shrivastav, who stopped. For once Sahil lost all his courage “He is an officer, senior officer! What if his ego gets hurt! Should I say good evening and leave!” a farrago of thoughts got created in his mind.

“Sir!” he started by mustering courage. You are not wearing your mask. Please wear it. You cannot walk without masks like this, mam you also please.” He handed him two masks that he was going to give Ganesh. Everyone present at the road stopped and looked at him. He could feel their eyes, staring at him in disbelief. “See him! Have this much courage to speak to Shrivastav sir in this manner!”. The security cab also stopped and Nikhil? Nikhil! He was no longer there, must have hidden behind a tree. Everyone prepared themselves, they were sure that Mr.Srivastav was going to shout or pass by laughing. But what happened, nobody even thought. A pat replete with praise came on Sahil’s back. Looking at the officers, now outside the cab, he said, “What job you should have done, this boy has done it. I am the security head, I wanted to see how well you are doing your job, I would have worn the mask after losing hope when you people passed by ignoring me. Just because I am a senior officer! Corona doesn’t discriminate between old and young and rich or poor! You hold respectable positions and you even have a duty, whoever you see breaking rules, even if it is the king of some empire! You have to stop them! Tell them to wear masks. We, people, know the art of discrimination, but we have to forget it, Corona never discriminates, Very good beta!” 

All that happened that day, touched Sahil deeply. “I did something good today if I haven’t done that and succumbed to my fear. I would join the line of cowards whose fears are unreasonable. He looked over the stars. “May God save the world from this pandemic!”