The Wait For the Meaning

Aaron gave a sigh. It was the last day of his Christmas holidays, and he still hadn’t completed his homework. It was hard to focus on a yellow sheet of paper when the outside world was shimmering with white, much less on study stuff. But he did not dare to think about the consequences of not completing it, so he made up his mind. He packed his books, wrapped a coat and set out for the library. Aaron intended to spend the entire day there, if that’s what it took to complete the work.

               The streets were covered in snow, with people walking in their woollen clothes. Aaron walked at a brisk pace. It was strange for a 15 year old to spend the last day of the holidays in a library by himself, but he had no choice. He would have liked a cup of hot coffee or something, but he had left his wallet behind. Suddenly, Aaron stopped. He had forgotten, THAT place was on the way to the library. The panic of the homework gave birth in him had clouded every other thought . Reluctantly, he looked up. The sign read, “Redwood Cemetery”. Aaron gave a sigh again and entered. The place seemed same as last time, just with a few extra gravestones. He used to visit here since he was eight, but had stopped coming since the last year. It was his method to “move on”, or as he told himself. Aaron’s parents had both died in two separate incidents. It was the reason he felt uncomfortable whenever other kids talked about their parents. He walked slowly to the place where their gravestones were supposed to be, but what a surprise! Only some fresh green grass grew there and nothing else. He was certain that this was the place he used to visit, unless his memory was failing him. Aaron was still pondering the situation when a voice behind him said, “Say, boy, is something bothering you?”.He spun around to see a tall man sitting on the bench opposite him, fully clad in black, with a hood pulled over his head, which obscured his face. “Not really“, replied Aaron. He didn’t think it was a good idea to tell a stranger such a preposterous thing, when it was most certainly a mistake on his part. He said, as if to change the topic, “Are you waiting for somebody?”. The man’s face wasn’t visible, but Aaron thought it had curled into a smile. “Yes, I guess you could say that.” the man seemed to have become a bit excited. Aaron thought of leaving and going to his original destination, when he spotted a young couple walk into the cemetery. He couldn’t see their faces very clearly, but they seemed vaguely familiar to him. “Ellie hurry up, it’s here.” the young man cried. Aaron noticed they laid flowers in front of a grave and were silent for a while, as if in prayer. “What are you waiting for, he is getting fidgety.” the woman said. That’s when Aaron noticed the baby in her arms.  It’s face was like a sun kissed spring afternoon, radiating peace. The young man looked at the child, thought something and together they made their way out of the place. “Quite an interesting thing, isn’t he?” the man clad in black said. Aaron didn’t get what he meant, but he turned around to see a child standing where he was on entering the cemetery. He seemed to be a pretty normal child, of eight or nine years old, but Aaron thought that his heart had skipped a beat. The child stood silently, but suddenly, he started to run. He ran and was soon out of their sight. The ground was a little wet where he had had stood. A bunch of flowers lay in front.

                  The world around him seemed to be a dream, as Aaron made his way to the library. He didn’t know what to make of the events of the morning, his mind was in a mess. He noticed the library building,and made his way up to it. As his hand touched the handle, he made a decision. “It’s nothing more than my fanciful imagination, let’s just focus on the work ahead.” Trying to act normal he walked into the library. “Oh, Aaron you came back again today?” the librarian lady smiled at him. Her words didn’t bother him, he was there for the first time that day, the lady must have made some mistake. He took a seat in a quiet corner, and opened his notebook. The essay’s topic was “The existence of death is the meaning of life itself. Give your views.”. There were far easier topics, but he didn’t know why he had been drawn to this one. As his pencil scratched on his note-book his mind wondered to that boy, but more importantly the two graves in front of him. The names on them were the very ones he had been looking for.”Elizabeth Yeager” and “Marcus Yeager”. He was pretty certain they weren’t there when he came there first. He pushed the thought out of his head . “I must have made some mistake, moreover this homework is more important.".Sitting up straight in his chair, Aaron focused his mind on the task in front of him.

                   When he was walking home, it was late evening. People were scarce on the road now, as it was getting pretty cold outside. Aaron felt a chill and stopped on the road. He looked up, and with a third sigh that day, made his way to the inside of the cemetery. A stubbornness had been born inside him, he would make light of the mystery regardless of what it took. As he went to the same spot, Aaron noticed the man in black was still sitting there. He was surprised, as it had been quite some hours when he left there. The man was slouched on the bench, and seemed to be sleeping. Aaron stopped in front of him. He reached out a hand towards the man. “The world is strange, dad, isn’t it?” Aaron froze and turned around. A man of good build and height was standing with his back to them, facing two graves. ”The other kids always talked about the places their parents took them to , the fun they had together, and I thought of my mom and dad, both turned to stone figures". Aaron felt a strange feeling of familiarity, and was about to call out to the man when he felt a hand on the shoulder. The man in black seemed to have woken up. His long and bony hand gripped his shoulder tightly. “The cycle of time is an immaculate circle. If the compass is distorted, the figure is no longer closed. The number of ensuing possibilities may be too great to handle.” Aaron didn’t understand a thing, but he heard the man walking away. He just said one last thing, “But still I am proud of you both, maybe your spirits have guided me this far.” Aaron turned to see the man had vanished. He looked at the figure on the bench. It had again assumed that slumped position.A hint of irritation came in his mind.He had missed talking to that man because of this strange person.He remembered that the man was waiting for something. His mind was made. He would stay here and find what had kept the man sitting on the bench for hours on end. To Aaron,the business seemed to reek of an aquatic animal.An eerie feeling stirred in his stomach that if he waited a bit,the answeres he sought might become clearer. So he sat on the bench beside the man and decided to wait. The watch on his wrist continued to tick away...

            An hour passed by and Aaron thought that the man was either a lunatic or had been hooked onto some drug. "A seven percent solution",he thought,and unbeknown to himself smiled. The man seemed to take no notice of the world around him, but just slept away. But he still refused to give up. Night fell and Aaron started to feel impatient.Finally, with his patience dangling on the edge of a feather bed, Aaron heard someone walking up to them.The man in black's eyelids flickered, and he seemed to be getting excited.Soon, an old man appeared and stood in front of the grave before them. Aaron looked at him, and suddenly felt an inexplicable but intimate connection. He couldn’t explain it, his legs seemed to be drawing himself to that man. He crept up quietly and stood beside him. They stayed like that for a long time, and then finally the old man spoke. “It is futile to search for the meaning of life Aaron, for an experience can never be described. It’s a miracle if a man can live his life with more health than illness, but no actions of his can ascribe a single reason to life itself. People do come up with their own answers, but they are never satisfactory.” Aaron was stunned at this speech. He somehow managed to say, “How do you know my name?”The old man turned towards him. As Aaron saw his eyes, he got the tingling feeling in his stomach. Those were the very eyes he saw in the mirror everyday in the morning. He tried to say something, but the world around him spun and before he knew it, Aaron blacked out.

                      The ambience seemed to be very peaceful around him. Aaron opened his eyes. It was still night-time, and he was in the cemetery. The bench in front of him was empty. “There you are.” Aaron turned around to see the tall man clad in black walk up to him. He seemed to be in a very good mood, and was humming a tune. In his right hand was a cluster of dead flowers and twigs,held in his fist. The man walked up to him, then noticing Aaron’s gaze said, ”Oh, I just found them around here. It is my job to collect the things whom life has deserted.” He thought something and then said. “So, did you find anything? I went to so much trouble for you, when you came up to me asking for the meaning of it all. I thought you had gone nuts, but the look in your eyes...” his voice trailed off. Aaron couldn’t understand a thing. He was going to enquire about the old man, when another thought struck him, the reason he was even here. “Did you find what you were waiting for?” he asked. The man cocked his head to one side, and said nothing for a few moments. Then in a curious voice he answered , ”Sure, won’t you like to know what it was?” .The man looked above Aaron’s head and licked his lips. Aaron slowly turned and saw his parent’s gravestones. But how strange! Between the stones he had come to visit that day, a third one had materialized. The flowers before it were still fresh. He squinted a bit, and his body suddenly went numb. On the cold slab of stone was etched a very familiar name, “Aaron Yeager”.