INTUITION

“Baba, we all are going to Nivati Beach holidaying for a week. I have booked a Bungalow on the sea-shore. Let us get ready for that outing next week.” Satish told his father Gangadhar Pant.

"Oh! Great! Let us plan our activity for the entire week. Yamuna will be happy to hear this. Have you and Vidya got your leave sanctioned?"

“Yes Baba, after Vidya’s leave was approved only we planned the venue and booked a bungalow in Nivati," Satish said.

“How far is it? How do we reach there?” Gangadhar Pant asked.

“It is in the district Sindhudurga, near Sawantwadi. We will drive down. It will take 10 hours from here. We will start at 6 in the morning. Will break at Mahad. Take our lunch. Relax for an additional half an hour. Then continue. We will reach there by 5-30."

"Are you listening Yamuna? Next week we are going to Nivati holidaying for 8 days.”

“So nice! I am ready any moment.” Yamuna Bai answered from the kitchen.

Along with the two teen-aged children, every one of the family was highly excited. They all started their planning for the entire week.

But in the night, Gangadhar Pant was a little upset. Yamuna Bai checked up with him at the time of going to bed.

“What is the matter? Why is all your enthusiasm dried up?”

“No Yamuna, I am a little unhappy over our trip. I am feeling again and again that we should change the time of our trip. This period is not the appropriate time for our holiday. Or we should change the venue.” Gangadhar Pant said. 

“When everything is finalized, why are you putting spoke in the wheel? Nothing doing. We are going to Nivati.” Yamuna Bai ascertained.

“I am repeatedly feeling that there will be some problem during our stay there.”

“What problem?”

“Something will happen and we will be only confined to our house there. “

“What makes you think like that?”

“No particular reason. But I am feeling that. My intuition is prompting me to stop the trip to Nivati” Gangadhar Pant said.

“This is your negative thinking. Forget about it.”

“Ok.” Gangadhar Pant said and went off to sleep.

The next day, again Gangadhar Pant was uneasy. He opened the topic with his son, Satish.

“Satish, I suggest, we should not go on holiday next week to Nivati.”

“Why Baba, what happened? Why do you think that way?” Vidya asked Gangadhar Pant.

“Nothing in particular. But I feel we should not go there.”

“But why? After giving a lot of consideration, we have come to conclusion that Nivati is the most suitable destination for us. It is not far away. Also, it is not a very popular spot. The number of tourists is minimal there. So, we will not have any problem with big crowds. We will get solitude and will be able to enjoy the clean beach. Moreover, our children can enjoy the water-sports such as scuba diving to their content, They can see various fish and go deep enough to see the corals, etc. Plus, they can enjoy the thrills of surfing too. The children will enjoy the trip most.”  Satish explained.

Gangadhar Pant slightly got positive about the trip.

“And also Baba, do you know, in winter, this is a home for many migratory birds. The sandpiper, a small bird, like our mynas, comes here to avoid the severe winter in the northern hemisphere. We can see them in hundreds on the serene beach in the early hours prior to sunrise. Before the beach gets disturbed by human activity, the birds come down on the shore to pick up worms. There are many instances of them flocking very close to solitary morning walkers on the beach. “ Vidya added her point.

Gangadhar Pant got inclined more towards going to Nivati as scheduled.

“The fog on the horizon gives a heartening view of sun rays penetrating the thick mist and illuminating the tranquil sea. Plus walking barefooted on the sand that has come fresh on the shore from the deep down ocean during the high tide gives a heavenly feeling.” Satish painted a colourful picture.

Gangadhar Pant almost agreed to the plan.

“Yes, all of this sounds extremely good. I am also inspired to go to Nivati. But somehow, my subconscious mind tells me not to proceed towards Nivati Beach. I don’t have any explanation. But my inner self is telling a big NO to this trip.

This NO is not only for me but for the complete plan.

So please, let us go out somewhere else. If that does not make you happy, we will go to Nivati some other time, but not now.” Gangadhar Pant pleaded.

 “Satish, can we change the dates? “ Vidya said. After a pause, she continued, “If Baba is so much decided on it, we will cancel our trip. We will go sometime later.”

“Thank you, Satish and Vidya. I don’t know why, but my subliminal mind is totally against this trip. We will plan our trip some other place at some other time.”

Eight days passed very quickly. And they saw flash news on TV.

“A sudden local cyclone which lasted for just half an hour has wreaked havoc near the Beach of Nivati.

The unanticipated gust of winds of the speed of 120 kmph to 150 kmph, appearing almost like a twister, hit the beach of Nivati early in the morning. This unexpected blast of winds caused windthrow to many coconut trees which are known to withstand high-speed winds. A large number of houses got severely damaged. The glass panes of the windows of the houses were shattered. Many rooftops of the fishermen’s houses, were blown off. A large number of persons were missing.

The rescue operation has started and clearing of the debris is bringing out many a dead body. The daily routine of the town is totally upset. The gloomy atmosphere is prevailing in the entire area.”

Listening to the news, Satish and his entire family were extremely upset. They heaved a sigh of relief. “If we were there at this difficult time, we would have got troubled. Don’t know what all we would have suffered.” Satish thought. “Sometimes, is it not better to believe intuition than all the options got through the reasoning?”