The farrago of love

The Farrago of love

I had quite an aversion to pets.Not that I hated them but more likely I hated their tantrums.They were not satisfied with food and shelter but had to be cuddled ,tickled,patted and many more of those activities which made them more than being human !

I myself was quite a rational person who would not go in for a “ pussy ” or a typical “Tommy ” kind of thing.I had never bothered myself for the white and black furs.Many of my friends in high school did have their best mates hidden in those furs! Many were so kind to not even attend the classes because their mates sneezed thrice in the morning.Phew…

All the years after my high school and college ,life was pretty well amicable for me cause they did not allow those ‘FURS’ in and around their campus.But life is not that delicious feast of ramen and eggs we always wish for.And so that very day came when that single thing which always had me turn my way otherside got me caught up in a dilemma of humanity and favouritism!

Now to tell my name,I am Allen Marc , twenty seven years old and a nearly good employee (as my manager says)!All I can say about myself is that I live alone in the two room apartment in LA with just enough amenities to satisfy my restless soul.Don’t ask about my parents, because my mother lives with her husband far in Greece and visits me during Christmas to be so gentle and kind to her only son!My father died when I was ten ,and I only remember that he was the best person I would ever meet in my life. I can’t explain how much I miss him till date ;He was a gentle man in his forties with a pleasing smile sticking to his fat lips every time.He took me to the hill top every morning to witness the rising sun with his son ,he took me to the market and bought me chocolate sticks every Sunday.I felt that I was so special for him that he would not miss a day with me…but he missed it!And I was left alone in those hills without my dad.

No more of him or I will be crying the ink out…Then the years passed by like the swift flowing breezes and I graduated and started my university life at St.Hopkins.My days were as usual,mundane and rhythmic.But one sudden happenstance of my life which was to follow me throughout,came my way!

I met Iris! And soon she became the iris of my eye!

I and Iris spent a lot of time together,in the garden,in the campus or the canteen,at the theatre and many more places …She was a calm and gentle girl with absolutely no demands and she never asked for anything from me…So I made up my mind that I will do my best to fulfill any of her wishes if she asks for ,at any cost..

One fine morning I got a call from Iris and was stunned by the news.She said Pogo had an accident and they are taking him to the hospital.Now to tell about Pogo ,he was Iris’ brother about whom she mentioned nearly in all conversations we had till date.I never met Pogo but I knew that he must be a very adorable little kid.So I decided to help Iris in all possible ways!And this was the biggest mistake I had committed in my entire life !

I went to their home that evening and saw that Iris was almost pale with fear and anguish… Her parents were sobbing as if they had lost some beloved person.After all this..I had bought some fruits and chocolates for Pogo but was stunned to hear that Pogo ate nothing other than meat and biscuits ! I was quite a bit bewildered to know that such a little kid could feed on nothing but only meat and biscuits!I asked Iris if Pogo would like to go with me to the park,to which she said “ Oh! I am so sorry,but he is actually very weak now.You can go in and have a talk with him!”

A bit bewildered I entered the room and was instantly aghast with a bad stench of animal excreta! My poor mind had by then started to imagine Pogo to be a human with feral features! Somehow I managed to get to the bed but there was no one up there. Again perplexed with this fellow Pogo and his habits I though this might also be his choice,Iris must say”Pogo slept nowhere but on the ceiling fan”. I started my mission to find that creature Pogo ,eating meat and biscuits ,in that small room.Suddenly my eyes went on a small cradle like bed on the side and though my soul gave a hunch not to peep in there,but my body paced swiftly to slide the curtains!

The view I got was the best view of my life! A middle sized fluffy Pomerian squatting and wagging in the most spooky way it can and more importantly a patch of brown poop was right beside his left leg…The Great Pogo whom I thought to be a sweet little munchkin turned out to be one of those brown furs from which I had always tried to keep a distance…It was hard to believe my girlfriend was one of those girls who swept tears on their fur’s sneezes!

I left her place with my face hung up.Iris was a beautiful and lively girl but I never thought she would have behaved like this with me for calling Pogo a “dog”…

To my horror ,Iris never contacted me again after University.I had taken to alcohol drinking and my aversion to pets had increased to such an extent that I even despised people with names like Tom,Rob,POGO and others!My mother came twice to visit me that winter in the year 2011 .She tried to mend my issues and rendered a lot of advices which fell like a heap on my head .Nevertheless none of them were useful. I slowly started to drift myself away from Iris’ memories and it was catalysed when I heard Iris had moved to Vegas after marrying a doctor.I was happy for her and for the fact that she was so efficient in moving over relationships,hardly broken a year ago…

Then after that I remained in China for a year to supplement my companies financial issues and roamed in the colourful streets of Beijing wondering whether I was the one who was responsible for the break up.I still couldn’t move over and my thoughts rekindled back and forth to the University days: how I met Iris on the Freshers Meet,how well we spent our time together and lastly how she called me a bastard and threw me out of her house.To complete the story of that day,after leaving Pogo’s room with a pale face I said to Iris ” You are shedding tears for that dog with poop on his leg! It is not what I expected of you.Are you insane? I cancelled my seminar for this!” I knew I was harsh but not too wrong…

I stayed in Beijing for about two months and then I went to Shanghai.One fine morning I moved out of my office quarters to stroll for a while. The sky was pure blue and the clouds were floating as if they had to hurry for the next show.There was a light breeze and the weather was cool and refreshing.I roamed a while then suddenly on a street nearby the quarters I saw a little nursery .It caught my attention for the pink coloured bunches of camelia and brilliant yellow roses hanging from the shelves and a lot many flowers with whom I was unfamiliar shone like the bright colours of rainbow.It felt as if the nursery was itself a pack of vibrant hues fluttering and swaying from a distance,giving the entire street a look which it could not acquire in all these years.I dragged myself to the shop and stood in front of it astonished and perplexed with its beauty.Suddenly someone from behind called me in some different language and as I turned back I saw a thin pale figure in front of me.A girl wearing a white shirt and pink skirt with a scarf around her neck entangled in a way as if someone had choked her!She had tiny eyes and auburn hair.I asked” Does this nursery belong to you?” To which she smiled and said yes…

I would like to say here something to all the readers.Life is very short for those who want to focus on the things which make them as well as let them make others happy.And life(and time) is like a stretch of 15 Mississippi for those who want to poke into the faults of others and make their lives miserable.What is intended is that we have different phases in our lives through which we go sequentially and simultaneously and these phases teach us the basics of our lives.Even a dying man is also learning!He learns the feeling of life passing away from the grip of his hand ,he learns to let all ties be broken so that the way towards the end of the journey gets easier.We all need to comprehend and live our lives the way life wants it but not the way life has to.