Hidden Talent

“O happy day, that fixed my choice”,

Katelyn was hearing the hymn's tune from the next apartment in her kitchen. She sang along with it and started to prepare food for her husband and two children. She felt energetic and happiness filled her soul while listening to the song.

     At 9 am, her husband, Stephen was ready to go, to the office. 

    “Katelyn, bye... be safe. I’ll be back around 6 pm.”

She woke her little one, “ Sana! Wake up baby, its time, come one get up.” Katelyn bathed her and dressed her up in a new frock which she bought last week in the market.

“Mom! It's so beautiful!! Thank you ma. Buy me more, I want more. Next time you go I want a pink colour frock okkk? Please mom please...” asked her little one. "Ok Baby, I will surely by you a pink frock next time”, replied Katelyn lovingly. By hearing these words Sana hugged her mother and kissed her on the cheek. She made her breakfast and asked her to eat. Then she went to check on her youngest daughter, Sheyona. Woke her up and gave her milk that she prepared earlier. Took the young one in her hand and went to see what her other girl was doing. “SANA, what are you doing, I asked you to eat, not to dance on the table,” said to her little one, who got down the table laughing. After Sana finished her breakfast, Katelyn took her to kindergarten along with the little one in her hand. After dropping her in the kindergarten she came back to her apartment, made everything ready for lunch by 11o’ clock, by that time Sheyona slept. She was free. Not knowing what to do she started painting. Sitting on her table, she takes her book while doing so, she sees one of Sana’s books, opens it and started smiling, the rhymes in the book made her look back at her memories. Those memories which she misses so much.

     Katelyn was a great musician when she was young. She was born to a musical father and started to listen to the musical pieces when she was in the womb of her mother itself. She loved music. When she was born, father said: “alike the queen in beauty with two bright eyes, pinkie cheeks and rosy lips”. Her beauty attracted everyone. Her voice sounded like a nightingale. The high pitch notes in her voice made her friends have goosebumps.” Katelyn!I love your voice” said her best friend Sophie astonishingly. She had several talents like painting, singing, writing poems, stories etc. But now she was packed in a city with her family and hides her identity.

  Her mobile started ringing. It’s her friend Sophia, who works as a professor in a college. She loves Katelyn more than any of her friends.

“Katelyn! How are you?

“Fine sissy!” said Katelyn.

“Dear, I need help, can you suggest a painting for any poetical piece?”

“Yes! sure sissy. I’ll send by evening” Katelyn replied enthusiastically. She had suggested the painting by five minutes cause she couldn’t sit peacefully without looking at the apt art for the painting as she was so much fond of painting. Sophia shared with her students and made her draw it perfectly. After looking at the art, Katelyn felt energetic. In a month, the government has announced it as ’LOCKDOWN’. Katelyn was depressed by the city life after the announcement of the lockdown. As Sana and Sheyona disturb her she wasn't able to concentrate on her work. They cry and make noise and doesn’t allow her to do a thing. When she tells her friend Sophia about her depression. Sophia felt worried for Katelyn and at the same time she thought it was lucky cause knowing the true talent of Katelyn she thought it would be the right time to make her utilise her talent. She even thought that Katelyn would now have no excuses to make. So Sophia found a website where they show off their talents and rewards would be given to the talented one. So Sophia said about this to Katelyn and asked her to write something.

“ Please write for me at least, please please please...” pleaded Sophia.

“Ok..Ok..Ok... I will write ...ok happy?” replied Katelyn.

Taking her diary and placing it on the table she thought

“ Now what to write...uuuhhhh” and placed her head in the table and was thinking hard.

“Mummmyyyyy.... Look what Sheyina has done...Look!” said Sana. 

“ Ohh no not again!” Katelyn thought.

“ What are you doing Sheyina baby!!... Baby what have u done!” asked Katelyn.

“ Aiieye aiiyeee eeeehhhee” replied her cute child. She was scribbling in her sister's notebook.

“ She scribbles on my note boookkkkk alwaysss...aaaaahhheeeee” cried Sana. “ Ohh baby its ok.. I will buy you a new one”. After settling the fight, she came back to her room and sat in front of her diary and suddenly an idea struck her, “ why can’t I write about my life!, Yes, I am writing my life”. She started writing her life as a story and finished it in two hours.

  “Dear ....!will you give me seven hundred rupees?” asked Katelyn to her husband.

“Yeah! Sure. For what can I ask?” asked her hubby.

“ I am actually planning to write for a competition.”

“ Do you want to read it?” asked Katelyn.

“ Yeah, sure darling!”

After reading, “Ohh that’s really good! I didn't know that you had such a talent, You studied engineering right? Then, how come you write so beautifully...I am really shocked by reading this...It's so good and there are no grammatical mistakes in it. And it also has a good flow....darling you have written our story amazingly” praised her husband. Katelyn paid the entry fee and submitted it. Then send it to her friend Sophia was shocked to see the writing skills in her. She decides to make Katelyn continue writing. She searched for many competitions and shared her the link. Sophia used to think of her past and reflect on her experience which she had with her friend Katelyn. Katelyn has taught so much to Sophia during her college days. Sophia wanted to see Katelyn becoming a great person in the future and not to be closed in the apartment hiding her talents. Though she might be in a place that she disliked so much and have a boring life, she still can achieve many things that she could have never dreamt of.

 Sophia searches for more and more literary competitions and sends Katelyn the link.

"The 21 days writing challenge" started as an adventure. Every day she wrote in different genres. Her poems were awesome and it spoke, thousands of emotions. She dedicated a poem entitled "Jasmine pot in her" to her best friend Sophia.The poem touched the soul of Sophia. Sophia helped her as much as she can. The colleague of Sophia corrected the poems of Katelyn. He wondered the skills in her. He gave encouraging words as comments. That made the friends write more and more. Sophia searches for contest worldwide and shared it to Katelyn and made her write." Katelyn! write it, just try dear"

"Hmmm we are not winning any contest," said Katelyn in a sad mood.

 "Hey! we will shine in our time. Keep writing Katelyn," said Sophie.

   On 6th August 2019, Katelyn won for a National poetry contest. Yes! she is one of the top five winners. "Sissy! I'm in top five "said Katelyn with happiness.

  Sophia jumped with happiness and shared her joy to her closer ones.

"Katelyn won in the poetry contest ."

"Nature poet, William Wordsworth would have been proud of her.

This is a great achievement. Having witnessed her poetic genius for a period. This does not surprise me. She deserves more laurels...My hearty congratulations to Katelyn" said Sophia's colleague Robin and shared to Katelyn. 

They both started to write 53-word short story and poems. Katelyn wrote in good standard English with perfect rhyme schemes. Sophia wrote a free verse style in simple English. 

One day, In a busy schedule, even though Katelyn was sick. She started to write for a novel-writing challenge. As the deadline was on 7th September at 12.pm. She winds up her work at 11.30 pm with 10,300 words. It was a big challenge for her, 'cause she finished writing for the challenge in the last two days. By seeing her hard work. Her husband became sad and asked her. 

"Why are you struggling a lot?

What will you get for this?"

Katelyn smiled and went to sleep with a new hope. 

 Soon her book the 21 days writing challenge got published and more than millions of copies out. She became a writer and was one of the famous Indian writers in English Literature.

   After years, Sophia invited Katelyn for her college function. She hugged Katelyn and said, "Dear! My dream has come true. "