The Last Penny - Chapter 15 – The Split Into Parallel Universes

I suppose most of us have heard of the theories of parallel universes.  According to some supposedly scientific notions, our world and universe is just one of the many possible parallel universes. There is also the theory that at a very minute level, the level of all things of the size of an atom or smaller, the laws of the universe are strange and not as we humans believe of the world around us. Things are not exact or measurable and many things, whose existence we believe in, exist only as probabilities. There are supposedly so many possibilities to the way things really are. Each possibility has a probability of being true or existing. Some possibilities are equally probable. Some even believe all possibilities exist simultaneously and what we observe is what we happen to come across or choose by our actions. There are stories and movies in the past too, that use this kind of premise to tell a story or two.

Now, enough of the weird scientific sounding theories! What happens in this story is that we have a split into parallel universes from this point onwards. The split occurred spontaneously as God finished chuckling after hearing Srini laugh. He wanted to see Srini’s life played out in different possible ways and with just a thought caused the universe to split into many parallel possibilities.

From here on the story of Srini will continue in different parallel universes. First we follow him in Parallel Universe 1 and then we will follow him in others.


Copyright  (c) Kannan Narayanamurthy 2015
All rights reserved 

The Last Penny - Chapter 14 – Moving In With Kids

During Srini’s travels Rohan and Anita had moved into the new homes that Srini had arranged for them. They took Srini to his own house that he had arranged to be sold off when he had gone. He had leased it back himself, to live out his last days there.  The house had fetched a good price above what he had expected.  Srini’s checks for his charities and others were covered by the sale of the house.

Rohan and Anita insisted that Srini spend some time at each of their houses and live out his last days at their homes.  They had discussed this among themselves. Anita wanted Srini to spend six months at his new house and then Rohan wanted to have Srini at his house until the end. They expected many of Srini’s relatives and family to visit him near the end  of time and needed a big house to accommodate all the guests. Rohan’s house was certainly the best for that. It had a couple of bedrooms for the twins that they were too young to use now.

Srini tried to suggest otherwise, saying he could move when his condition became worse. They argued a little and finally came up with a compromise. Srini was to stay at his own place for a couple of months, dispose of most of his ‘stuff’ and then move to Anita’s.

Anita had recently met a young man she liked. He was a bright, cheerful professional engineer named Tarun, who worked near Anita’s office.  He had a sunny disposition, ever ready with a laugh and joke. They had met at a coffee shop nearby.  Anita wanted to get to know him a bit more before bringing him along to introduce to the family in a more formal way. She wanted to give Srini all the attention without having to worry about dividing her time between her new friend and Srini. It was a good test of the young man’s character, she figured.

Tarun seemed to be doing well on his test. He was patient, understanding and kind. It was getting more serious. Anita wanted to have Srini spend time with her before she and her boyfriend decided to live together.

Finally, Srini agreed. He settled back into his usual routine, but then slowly proceeded to dispose of most of his belongings by giving them away and having a huge garage sale. He had a farewell party with his neighbours and friends. Dr. Fa came with his family. Dan and his wife and kids too showed up. With the help of them and his family, Srini moved out to Anita’s with a very small set of belongings that fit into Rohan’s family van.

Srini felt very good and active as he started his days at Anita’s. He was like a perfect housekeeper instead of a guest. He cooked meals, cleaned, organised the laundry, planted a little kitchen garden, went for walks. He made her breakfast, packed her lunches and made dinner. She too joined him often, coming home early from work to cook or do chores with him.  They would sing along or even dance along as they worked, often smiling, laughing and even crying a few times when they realised it might all come to an end soon.

Rohan’s house was just a short walk away. Srini babysat the twins. He occasionally did some yard work at Rohan’s place or cooked meals for them. He made new friends in the neighbourhood on his walks and at the community centre. They all often had dinner at Anita’s or Rohan’s together.  The twins started to look forward to walks with Srini. He became a familiar figure at the park nearby along with many young mothers and fathers. Time just flew by.

After a pleasant six months, Srini moved to Rohan’s house. He had already set up his own room – one that was to be the bedroom of one of the twins when they were older. Anita was emotional when she saw him leave with his small set of belongings.

Despite the familiarity of Rohan’s house, it took Srini a bit longer to settle into a comfortable routine there. Srini quickly developed a daily routine where he would be up early and help Rohan, Molly and the kids get started out on their work day.  He managed time for himself. Molly was very appreciative of Srini’s help in breakfast, feeding the kids, packing lunch for Rohan. She pampered Srini in return. He would get warm packs for his back and legs when he sat back to watch the news. He was plied with new and exotic herbal teas, new items from exotic menus. Molly had started to work part time from home and part time at her office. The twins seemed to prefer spending time with Srini as much as at their day-care centre.  They liked to sing or hum along with Srini’s singing or dancing.

Anita started to bring Tarun by more often to visit the family. Molly and Rohan would often smile knowingly and sometimes jokingly suggest to Srini that Tarun had not gone back to his home until very late at night, or very early the next morning.

Srini would smile indulgently. He knew and trusted his daughter’s judgements and decisions. He knew that Anita was mature and wise beyond her years.

Srini went for regular and periodic visits to Dr. Fa’s office for his medical check-ups. He often met Ben on his way there or back to shine his shoes.  They would chat a bit. After a couple of big tips, Ben asked him quietly, but looking into Srini’s eyes, “Is everything OK with you, Srini-man?”

Srini told him of his diagnosis.

“I knew it! I reckoned something was different a while back,” said Ben.

He went on with his work as usual. The next time Srini was there, Ben offered him a ‘seated’ service. He had moved his shoe-polishing kit closer to the bench nearby and he asked Srini to sit on the bench while he polished his shoes. He noted that Srini seemed to walk a bit slower of late.

Four months passed easily, happily and in a blur with Srini at Rohan’s house.  Srini was still feeling good. From the last visit to Dr. Fa, he had come back with good report about his health. The cancer had not yet shown up enough.

As he lay down to sleep that night, Srini was mentally going over the situation. He realised that he was running out of money that he had budgeted for the time he had expected. He still had enough to last him an extra six months. He was not a big spender and lived on very little, happily and comfortably. He really saw no need for any great purchases.  He felt strangely odd and a peculiar unease when the thought of having good health and no money left to life occurred to him.

“Not likely that I will reach that state of being a healthy pauper,” Srini told himself. He laughed it off and went to sleep.

At the same time God had a little laugh too. Little did Srini know what fate had in store for him.  He slept peacefully, as did all others.


Copyright  (c) Kannan Narayanamurthy 2015
All rights reserved 

The Last Penny - Chapter 13 – Europe and Americas Bucket List

Srini flew in to Frankfurt. He was met by his cousin and a childhood friend. He spent a couple of days with them and their families. They had a good time and Srini told them why his time was running out. He asked them to keep the news to themselves. It was emotional, but they agreed and went along.

They drove to Munich where he met an old flame of his, Gisela, who was working in a pub and attached restaurant. Srini and his friends showed up at the restaurant to surprise her and ordered a large round of drinks and meals. Srini had heard she was widowed now. He wore a fake moustache to try and disguise himself minimally, to see if she would still recognise him. They purposely chose a table that Gisela would wait on.  As they ordered the meal Srini did not say much, but kept looking at her. He was also polite and thanked her. He asked her to help him choose from the menu, pretending he did not understand the local food. His friends were grinning slyly. Gisela noticed it, but kept quiet. She looked deeply at Srini for a few seconds and thought that he did remind her of someone she had known.

Finally, when Srini was about to drink his beer from the big mug, his moustache fell into it. Gisela had just turned her back towards them and was headed towards the kitchen when she heard a burst of laughter behind her. Instinctively she turned around to see all eyes on Srini as he fished the moustache out from his mug. She was taken aback as she looked more deeply at him. She saw him look up at her directly into her eyes. She recognised him and realised he already knew who she was. Srini dropped the beer soaked moustache on the table next to him and stood up, still looking at her.

“Gisela!” he said softly as he came around his friend’s chair towards her.

She walked up to him. She gave him a bear hug as he returned her embrace. It was a passionate kiss that followed. The restaurant manager, an old kind man understood that Gisela perhaps needed some time with Srini and his group. He nodded to her as she looked at him pleadingly. He helped pull up a chair for her and asked her to sit with them. He summoned another waitress to take Gisela’s place.

Srini introduced Gisela and his friends to each other. They had one of the longest meals. Srini’s friends had plans to go and attend to something and go to a hotel they had booked. They left Srini and Gisela alone for an evening to themselves.

Gisela drove Srini home to her place. She changed and they went out for a pleasant evening out together. Srini went with her, danced at a club and listened to music. They walked the streets holding hands. It was a most pleasant evening. They went back to her place and he said goodbye the next morning after breakfast. He returned to his friends at the hotel. They all drove back to Frankfurt.

Srini went on from there to a cruise in France and then on to the USA. There too he met his friends and family. Then he did scuba-diving and sky diving, ate the hottest Texan chilli, went to Mexico for a day. He went on all the rides in a circus next to a state fair just because a cheeky circus staff dared him to. He drove across the country in a car for a week. He visited some famous universities – ‘ temples of learning’ as he called them, where some of his idols had learned or taught. He wrote back to his family – “Now I can honestly say, I have been to Harvard, MIT, Princeton, Cornell, Stanford and Berkeley. Never mind if I just wandered the halls for a few hours.”

Just before he left them, he told his family and friends in the USA why he might never see them again. It was heartfelt farewells that he received with love. He felt good to see and experience everything.

He then went on to South America, saw Machu Picchu, the Inca trail and penguins in Argentina.

Finally, Srini returned back to his home. He had crossed out most of the items on his bucket list of places to visit. He realised he had done a bit more than he expected even as he had decided to give some a miss. He had no regrets about them. He was feeling fairly good and fit. He reckoned that in a few months, he would start to go downhill. He wanted to make the best of the time with his own kids and grandkids. Anita and Rohan, with his family, were there to welcome him back at the airport.


Copyright  (c) Kannan Narayanamurthy 2015
All rights reserved 

The Last Penny -Chapter 12 – A Tour of Nairobi and Off to Europe

“Good morning, Mister Srini.”  Srini woke up with a start and his eyes were blinded by the sunlight streaming in. Amani had come to wake him up. It was getting late in the morning, the big old fashioned grandfather clock in her room had just struck 10 o’clock and Srini had overslept. Amani and her family had waited patiently for him to join them at breakfast, then relented and went ahead. The younger son, then the older son and then Kiano and his sister all had taken turns to come by and see if he was awake. They had gone back without disturbing him. The older son set off for his work. Finally, Amani decided it was time to check if he was OK. The taxi driver was due in about half an hour. She wanted to call him off, if Srini was not well.

“Oh! What happened? I slept in late?”

“Yes!” said Amani smiling.

“How late is it?”

“It is just past 10 o’clock.”

Srini recovered his wits as he lay there. 

“Give me five minutes! I will be ready. The taxi should be arriving soon!” he exclaimed.

“Are you feeling well, Srini? If not, we can call off the taxi,” said Amani gently.

“I am feeling fine. I just slept deeply and long. I will be up in a minute,” he said.

“I’ll see you soon. Breakfast will be waiting for you!” Amani left the room.

Srini, got up, made his bed, brushed his teeth, washed his face, groomed his hair and changed into proper daytime clothes and walked over to Amani’s kitchen. He was there within 10 minutes. A hot breakfast was waiting for him. He ate quickly and drank his tea as Amani joined him.  Just as he finished, Kiano ran in announcing the arrival of the taxi.

Amani had packed a bag. Her younger son was ready too. Srini went over to get his bag and wallet. They all set out for a day to catch the sights and sounds of Nairobi.

It was a fun day.  They saw things at a leisurely pace. Kiano and Amani explained things and acted as translators. Srini had the best guides he could have hoped for. Srini got to try out the local cuisine, see locals dance at a club, sing along. He bought a few small souvenirs that he could pack and take back to his family. He bought a few gifts for Makena and Amani’s family as well as the taxi driver. Srini paid and tipped him well. They were out into the night and returned past 11 o’clock. It was straight to bed for everyone. Kiano had school to attend next morning. Srini too felt pleasantly tired and was soon off in dreamland. This time the dreams were a pleasant mix of the things he had seen that day. It was like a kaleidoscope of memories and imagination.

Next morning, Srini woke up early by himself. He heard the sounds of Amani, her sons and daughter-in-law up and getting ready for the day. Soon Kiano was all ready to go off to school. He came to bid goodbye to Srini. Srini had told him, he would be leaving to go back to his hotel, prepare and plan to fly out to Europe the next day, in the evening.  He wanted to spend the rest of the day at a computer in the hotel, writing to his family and friends and calling people he hoped to meet ahead of arriving in Europe.

After breakfast, Srini bid goodbye to Amani’s family. She offered to walk up with him to the hotel. She said she could do some shopping on the way back. Amani and Srini set out, carrying his luggage between them. It was a nice, leisurely long walk. They set down his bags at the hotel, sat down to have a drink. It was getting close to lunch and Srini invited her to stay and have lunch with him. 
They sat down, chatting and lunch was served. After they were finished eating, they had a little drink. 
It was about 2 o’clock, when Amani stood up, facing Srini.

“Srini, I must go now. I am glad that we met. I know it may not be likely that we meet again, but you have a friend in me now – a friend for the rest of your life. Take care, my friend. Write to me when you go back to your home and kids.”

She came up to where Srini was standing, looking at her with a tender smile on his face. She gave him a bear hug. He returned her embrace, realising that she was generous in both her spirit and size. She was looking into his eyes as they held each other. He moved his face close to hers and kissed her on the cheek softly. She pulled his head down and kissed him on the forehead.

Srini walked over to his luggage and brought out a tiny package that he had brought from India. He gave it to her.

He walked with her to the exit of his hotel, out on the street. He saw her walk away, stop after a while, turn towards him and wave goodbye. He waved to her too. He waited until she was out of sight. Slowly, he walked back to the hotel room and got busy on his computer, sending messages all over the world, many to Europe ahead of his trip there. There were a few special friends he had planned to visit and look up. He sent pictures of his visit to Nairobi and Dubai to family in India, Rohan and Anita. He was flying in to Frankfurt. One of Srini’s cousins would be there to receive him. Srini worked late into the night having a light dinner served in his room and then went to sleep at the hotel. It was comfortable. He woke up early next morning and went for a walk in the park nearby. He passed by the bench where he had sat and met Amani. It was all quiet on a weekday morning. There were few people at the park then. Srini walked back to his hotel and packed his bags. He settled his accounts at the reception and waited to be picked up by the friendly taxi driver who had brought him there. They drove back to the airport. Soon Srini was up in the sky after an early dinner at the airport waiting lounge. He reclined his seat and lay back.


Copyright  (c) Kannan Narayanamurthy 2015
All rights reserved 

The Last Penny - Chapter 11 – Amani’s Home

Amani lived with her two sons and the wife and children of one of them, in a city housing block with rooms distributed to accommodate her and her children within an enclosed compound. There was a big common kitchen and pantry that was attached to her bedroom. There was a living room next to it. In old fashioned style the bathroom and toilets were away from the house. Her two sons each had a separate family bedrooms and portions of the house. There was a shed with three walls and a roof with a driveway leading to it. It did not appear luxurious, but was well kept, neat and organised.  There were a wire-mesh covered chicken coop and a couple of goats tied to posts. There were a few trees, mostly around the boundary and a couple in the middle of the land. There was a well at one corner. It was an old house.

It was obvious that Amani was the matriarch and the leader of the family.  She had led and seen the family through tough times in the past. She was well-known and respected in her neighbourhood as a good woman, mother and a special soul – in the way she cared for others and dared to help them in ways that was not the norm.  She seemed to be trusted by all. No one seemed to question her decisions, like the one she made by inviting Srini to spend a day with her family.

Srini realised that Amani and her children were well educated. They were a mix of the traditional and the modern. There seemed to be something rare and unique in her family and their ways that would stand out anywhere in the world. Amani reminded Srini of his own sister in India, who was prone to doing things like Amani did – helping and befriending total strangers.

“It is my luck and fate to meet Amani and her family,” thought Srini to himself.

As soon as they arrived, Amani showed Srini to a room he would share with her younger son. It had two beds on opposite sides with a partition in the middle. There were separate entrances to the room, one for each side of the partition. That son apparently worked a traveling job. He was a young man, in his early twenties, and still single. The other one was older and worked locally too. He had a separate, bigger portion of the house with a smaller kitchen as well. Most of the meals were cooked in the bigger kitchen that Amani ruled. The daughter-in-law had the smaller kitchen kingdom.

Srini was impressed that Amani and her family spoke many languages other than English and Swahili. She spoke a little French and even some Hindi. They had neighbours who were of Indian origin.

Srini put down his suitcase under the bed. He removed his shoes and put on a pair of indoor shoes that he carried. Amani asked him to rest and said she would be back shortly after she had rustled up lunch. There was a radio set on a shelf nearby that she turned on for him to listen to. She and Kiano went off to let the rest of the family know.

Srini heard some talk in the distance as he lay down and rested in the spare but clean, made bed. In a little while, Kiano came up and said that everyone was waiting for him to join them at lunch.

Srini stood up and walked with Kiano into the living room that was converted into a dining room at short notice. There was food in a table at the centre. It was an appealing spread. Amani and her daughter-in-law were setting up the plates. There was a little bright-eyed little tyke peeping from behind the daughter-in-laws legs – obviously Kiano’s little sister. He called out to her and she came and clung close to him. He introduced Srini and the little one put out our hand for a handshake, while hiding her face behind her brother’s back.

Srini knelt down and shook her hand solemnly and greeted her. He turned and greeted Amani and her daughter-in-law.

“This is Sadiki,” Amani introduced her daughter –in-law.

As he looked at them, the little girl made bold to have a peek at Srini while she thought he was not looking at her. She had sparkling eyes, well-made lovely hair and her upturned face was dripping innocent curiosity, shyness forgotten for a moment. Srini knew this would happen and he suddenly turned and faced her with a smile and pulled out a little sweet candy from his pocket (that he had got on the airplane). He stunned the little girl who seemed frozen in shock.  She suddenly instinctively tried to hide behind her brother who had moved away and was laughing at her expression. She hugged him and buried her face in his belly.

“Hello! What is your name dear?” Srini asked in a soft, friendly voice.

The little girl slowly turned to look at Srini.

Looking at his face, smile and finally the candy, she decided he was a friend. She reached out with her hand for the candy, while her face was still turned partly away.

“Tell Mr. Srini your name, Makena,” said Kiano, giving it away and making everyone laugh.

“Makena!” lisped the little one, pointing to her chest.

“Srini,” said Srini pointing at himself.

The friendship was sealed with the candy.

Soon the Amani’s sons came in, the elder one was a quiet, reserved man whose age Srini could not tell. It seemed surprising that Amani was his mother. The younger son had just returned from work. He shook hands, introduced himself, and asked to be excused to wash up and join them in a little while.

Shortly they all sat down, around the table.  Kiano said grace. Amani and her sons helped serve everyone. The daughter-in-law started to feed Makena on her lap as she too ate from her own plate.

They ate together chatting as they caught up with each other’s news. Srini was mostly silent, listening. Amani briefly described how they met. She said that Srini would be spending a day with them and that she would be showing him around town the next day, take him to the market and to a dance the next day. She did not mention his medical condition, but it was apparent that they all knew.

They were a kind, friendly family who were warm and very happy, each doing something that they enjoyed. They inquired about Srini’s family. He showed pictures of them to Amani and her family on his mobile phone. Amani and her sons shared some stories about their own family.

After lunch, the youngsters all helped clean up and brought Amani and Srini a drink so that they could sit down on two comfortable chairs just outside in the verandah, looking out on to the yard and the street.

Suddenly, Srini realised that he and Amani were alone. The children had quietly dispersed and gone back to their portions. The two slowly sipped their drink and sat back, reclining comfortably in their easy chairs.

Srini was curious about Amani. He wondered where the father of her children was. No one mentioned him. She was curious about Srini because he never mentioned the mother of his children either. They were both old and mature enough to respect each other’s privacy.

Amani got up, went in and came back with a small compact radio that she set down beside them.

“Would you like to listen to some of my favourite music?” she asked.

“Yes, I would like that,” nodded Srini.

As the music played, Srini noticed Amani visibly relaxing and sinking back in her chair. She looked at him and then slowly her eyes became half closed. Srini too felt the soothing effects and shut his eyes. He drifted off into a pleasant, strange, exotic dream world.  It was over an hour before he woke up with a start. He opened his eyes and it took him a while to remember where he was. He smelled the flavour and saw tea being offered to him by Amani, as she gently tapped his hand to wake him up.

“I dozed off! What time is it?” asked Srini, “Oh, Thank you! That smells wonderful.”

He accepted the tea. He sipped it tentatively and found the taste delightfully different from any he had tasted before.

“It is about 5 o’clock,” said Amani.

Amani too sat down next to him. They drank the tea quietly. Srini got up and stretched himself and his legs.

“Would you like to go for a walk and stretch your legs properly?” asked Amani.

“Yes. That would be nice.”

They took their tea cups inside and Amani quickly rinsed them clean, set them out to dry on the kitchen counter.

They walked out. Their stroll took them around the house, to the street and out into a trail that was obviously used regularly. They chatted about each other’s lives. Amani’s husband had gone missing one day from a contract job a few miles away about 10 years ago. There were some rumours that he had run away and some that he had been killed. Amani believed the latter. There had been some, ‘mischief-makers’ she called them, who sometimes reported that he was spotted in various places around the country and even across the border in the neighbouring countries. She ignored them. She trusted and knew her husband. They had never found a body, but the company he worked for had compensated her with a lump sum. She had worked as a teacher in the local area. She still taught a couple of days at a high school nearby. She helped run the school as well being on the school board. Amani was well educated and trained as a teacher.

Srini told her about his own life, his family, children and his divorce many years ago. They returned from the walk as dusk set in, to see dinner being cooked by Sadiki and her husband helping her. Makena was playing with toys and scribbling on some scrap books. Kiano was working on some homework and working out what appeared to be math problems.

Amani went straight to the kitchen and at a glance seemed to know exactly what was going on and what needed to be done. Srini went over and sat next to Kiano, watching silently.  Kiano looked up and smiled in greeting and went back to his work. The radio was playing in low volume and occasionally Srini would catch sight of each member of Amani’s family singing along, dancing or swaying as they went about their work.

It was a simple but tasty dinner. They ate as they watched the television news. Srini noted that the television was not always switched on, but seemed to be on a schedule.

As dinner was finishing, the day too came to an end, it was dark outside, with the street lights at a distance. After dinner, again the youngsters quietly and quickly cleaned up. Wished good night to Srini and Amani and retired to their quarters.

Srini and Amani had another couple of hours to themselves, sitting in front of the TV, now muted. They slowly chatted and made plans to see a few things the next day in their outing with Srini. He mentioned the taxi driver from the airport whose number he had. He called him to be picked up from Amani’s house and drive them around the next day. Her younger son and Kiano offered to come along. Apparently, Kiano was getting all his homework done earlier than usual so that he would be free the next day to go along with Srini and Amani.

It was about 10 o’clock when Srini said goodnight to Amani and walked over to his bedroom. The younger son of Amani was sitting in bed, quietly reading with a reading lamp. Srini changed into his bedclothes, brushed his teeth in the little sink nearby, turned out the lights and said good night to the young man who was still reading. He too wished Srini back. Soon all the lights were out. The sound of the crickets and insects outside were the only sounds heard. The moon sailed across the sky steadily, sometimes veiled by clouds. There was a slight drizzle late at night and it only lulled back into sleep anyone who happened to wake into consciousness.



Copyright  (c) Kannan Narayanamurthy 2015
All rights reserved 

Life's non-contradictions - You are special, you are not!

Your family and friends tell you - "You are unique. You are important. You can make a big difference. You are the very meaning of life to me. You are the most important person in my life. Every little thing you do can change the world. We are privileged to be born as human and are closest to God's own image. Never forget, how signficant you are to us all, to the world. You mean the world to me. YOU are SPECIAL."

There are others and nature who tell you - "You are just like everyone else. You are no more important than anyone else. You cannot make a great difference. You are just another person, another living creature. No matter what do you do or accomplish, it will be gone someday wiped out along with this earth and even the sun and the stars. You are small and insignificant in the larger scheme of things. You are a small speck of life on a small little planet in this vast universe, one among a trillion living beings even on this tiny, fragile planet. Get over this hyped up, image and arrogance of self-importance. Get over yourself. Sure, you have a choice to do good or evil as you choose, no one really can stop you, but don't overestimate the impact or importance you have. You will be gone without a trace someday. If anything, you humans are the worst in your arrogance, habits and attitudes.  Never forget that YOU are NOT anymore special to me or anyone else, over anyone else or any other creature (most of whom behave better).

Are these two contradictory messages? I don't think so. Both are true at the same time. You mean different things to different people, to different belief systems and to nature itself.

You are special to a few but you are NOT special to the rest of the universe.

Copyright  (c) Kannan Narayanamurthy 2015
All rights reserved 

The Last Penny - Chapter 10 – The Itinerary – Stranger in Dubai and Kenya

Srini landed in Dubai, spent a couple of days touring around, staying in a hotel and seeing the desert on a conducted tour. He then flew to Nairobi, Kenya. He knew absolutely no one there. He had never been there before.  He stayed at a hotel near a park. He had befriended the taxi driver who had driven him from the airport. He got his phone number to arrange for him to drive him around for a couple of days. Srini had never been in Africa and it was a dream from his childhood to visit that continent. He slept in late, had breakfast at the hotel and wandered over to park nearby. He sat down on a bench. There were some people walking around, some children playing a little ways away from his bench. He could see and hear them.  As he was lost in observing them, he missed seeing a largish lady coming up the path with her a young boy, who put down a bag next Srini’s bench, shouted something at the lady and bounded off to meet up with the children playing in the distance.

“May I sit down next to you if this seat is not taken?” asked the lady with a very heavy typical local accent.

Srini’s attention came back to his immediate surroundings, he looked a little puzzled, but recovered his wits quickly.

“Of course! Of course you may! Sorry I did not realise anyone else might come up,” said Srini shifting to one end of the bench and making room for the lady to sit down comfortably with some space still between them.

She was a well-built woman whose age he could not tell exactly but she did appear over 40. Looking at her proportions, it appeared that God was in a generous mood when he created her. She had on a dress of a multi-coloured, beautiful flower pattern, well-groomed hair and bunch of large rings on her fingers.  She wore a few necklaces too that were elegant even though they stood out and captured the attention of people. They flowed down the contours of her open neck and front, coming up almost to her belly. She exuded a strong but pleasant fragrance that must have been a local perfume. She wore a pair of quiet, worn, but well-maintained shoes. At her side on her arm was a big bag that was too large to be a handbag. She set it down next to her as she sat down with practised ease, brushing down the back of her dress against her body with a downward sweeping motion of her free arm. Srini, who normally was not very observant of such details, surprised himself that he noted all these things in the woman. She sat down with her bag against the arm rest of the bench and leaned against it slightly as she turned herself around slightly, facing Srini.

“Good morning! Nice day to be out in the park,” she said.

“Good morning!” Srini replied and stopped quickly as he realised she was continuing to speak.

 “My grandson always plays with his friends on Saturday mornings. I bring him here every weekend. I have never seen you around. Are you new around here?” asked the lady in a friendly, but softly booming voice.

“Yes, I am. I came in yesterday. I have never been here before,” said Srini.

“Well, you certainly do not look like his or anyone’s grandmother to me,” Srini thought to himself. One could never tell with some women, especially from some cultures, age reading was a difficult and dangerous art.

“Well, I hope you enjoy Nairobi and have good time,” she said with polite friendliness.

“Thank you! I hope I am not occupying the seat that someone else usually does. Am I? Are you expecting any other regulars to come by?” asked Srini, “I can move on to another bench, if that is the case.”

“No, No! You sit right there as long as you want. Normally, no one else comes here at this time. Sometimes they do, but they can just as well find another place, you came here first today,” said the lady in her easy, friendly manner, patting the seat of the bench.

“Ok, thank you!” replied Srini. They both sat quietly without speaking for a few minutes while the lady pulled out things from the bag she was carrying, rearranged somethings, put them back and pulled her grandson’s bag closer to her. She picked up some craftwork that seemed like pattern weaving by hand. She went to work, busily.

Srini scanned the trees around him and saw the birds on the branches and flying around. He looked at the sky, the shouts of the children playing in the distance. He felt comfortable, totally at home, in a completely foreign country, among total strangers. He had never had time to observe himself like this. In the past, every time he had been to a new place, it was usually with a purpose – either on business or on a tour. He seemed to have no other goal now than to just be there and enjoy his existence.

Soon, an irregular stream of people walked past Srini’s bench.  Some wore formal business suits, some were in casual attire. Some walked alone, some in groups, talking animatedly. Some nodded greetings towards Srini and the lady, some were too busy. There were a bunch of languages he heard – he could identify some English, some French, even some German and Arabic. There were many that he could not. He was lost in it as he suddenly realised that there seemed to be some music playing in the background - someone was singing or humming, but no instruments were playing. He turned towards the lady next to him since it came from her direction, close by.

The lady had some long, coloured pins in clasped between her lips. She was softly humming and singing as she worked merrily on her craft project. The tune was a repeating one and it had slowly seeped into Srini’s mind subconsciously. It was a strange foreign rhythm yet friendly and catchy to the soul. Without realising it, he had started to hum along too, to the refrain. Portions of the tune reminded him of an old familiar song that his own mother used to sing. She too sang as she worked – cooking or cleaning or even combing someone’s hair.

It was utter bliss and happiness to feel the common humanity in a completely different culture and place. Srini suddenly realised that he would be leaving it all behind, soon. The feeling hit him hard. Much as he fought it, he could not control his feelings of not wanting to leave this world so soon. His eyes stung painfully, moistened over, but he mastered it and did not let the tears flow.

He did not realise that he had been staring at the lady next to him with a strange look on his face. He was jolted into realization by her asking him a question and looking at him with a surprised and concerned expression.

“Are you OK, Mister?”

“Why? Yes, Yes, of course! I am fine. Thank you! I was just lost in thoughts. I hope you don’t consider me rude, if I was staring at you. I am sorry if you felt uncomfortable,” Srini was a bit flustered and a bit ashamed,

“Please do continue your work.”

He did not want to get up immediately and move away since that would have made things look worse than they were. He thought he might give it a few minutes, get up and walk way after politely saying ‘goodbye’.

The lady looked at him directly, and then she nodded and went back to her work and singing. As she finished some part of her work with a flourish of her hand, she ended her song with a flourish in her voice.

Srini could not help looking at her. She too was looking at him.

She looked him directly in the eye, as if searching deep inside his mind and reading his soul.  A couple of seconds passed as if they were hours.

“Tell me, what is wrong with you? Is there a problem?” She asked evenly.  The questions did not sound harsh or as if she was offended by his staring at her. It sounded like she had not made up her mind and was genuinely curious.

Srini, looked a bit surprised. He could not tell from her tone if she was upset with him or not. Come what may, he decided to be totally honest and tell her the truth.

“I feel very good and terrible at the same time,” he replied, trying to keep his voice steady.

“Why?” she asked, her voice softening a bit.

“I will miss all this terribly, when I am gone.”

“Where are you going?”

“I don’t know,” replied Srini.

“If you miss all this so much, could you not come back for another visit?” She asked, her tone suddenly becoming very gentle and she kept staring at him – searching with such power in her gaze that he could feel it on his face and eyes.

“Because, I cannot!” cried out Srini, sounding defensive, in a strangely loud voice and he could no longer hold back his tears.

“Oh you! Come here!” She pushed her craft work into the bag and moved over closer to him. She reached out her arm, around the back of his head and pulled it over her shoulder as he leaned over and cried his heart out, quietly. He seemed to sob quietly and his body shook.

“I knew it! I knew it! You have the same look that my brother had,” she said fiercely at fate. She pulled him closer and hugged him, patted his back.

“So, how long are you here for?” she asked him as Srini regained his composure.

“A couple of days more,” replied Srini.

“How much longer do you have?” she asked this in a matter of fact way.

“A bit over a year, the doctor says.”

“What is your name? I am Amani ,” said the lady.

“I am Srini.”

“You Indian?”

“Originally yes.”

“Tell me about yourself, Srini.”

“I will, but you tell me about yourself too, Amani.”

“What have you planned for the rest of the day?” Amani asked, realising it sounded a bit odd.

“Nothing at all in particular!” said Srini smiling.

They both laughed.

“What did you plan to do when you came here to Nairobi?”

“I wanted to go and visit a place that I had never been to before. I thought I would like to look around town. Soak in the sights, no rigid idea of must  see tourist attractions. I want to see life in whatever form I come across it. I would like to meet people and make friends,” Srini explained.

“Friends for the rest of your life?” asked Amani with a strange cheeky smile. She definitely had a sense of humour.

Srini cracked up into laughter, “Good one that! Yes, of course for the rest of my life!”

They both laughed again.

Briefly, Srini told Amani about himself and the diagnosis and his plan for the rest of the time remaining for him. Amani heard him, often nodding. She had a brother who had passed away a few years ago. He had accidentally killed his own child and had taken his own life after a while not being able to cope with his feelings, despite the fact that no one blamed him. He had been a very bright, popular young man, in love with life and usually in such high spirits that no one believed what he would become. He had planned his exit ahead, silently and quietly by himself behind a façade of still being cheerful and busy. He had spent a few months with ‘a certain look’ as if he was drinking in all the pleasure of life and being alive for the last time. That was the look that Amani had recognised in Srini. Amani had broken through the wall with her brother and he had come clean to her. She had tried her best and realised that she could not change him. She had helped him until the very end.

Srini was caught unawares by his own feelings and how they surfaced in front of a total stranger and not around people that knew him the most. He thought about it and realised that he was not trying to hide his feelings in front of his kids and friends, but that they brought out other feelings in him that masked the ones that came out in front of Amani.

“Do you want to spend a day with my family?” Amani asked him.

It surprised Srini how easily she said it and invited him into her life and it surprised him how easily he accepted.

“Yes, I would like that,” he said with quiet gratitude.

They chatted for a while longer, talking a walk around, Srini helping with the extra bag. They walked up over to the sidelines of the children’s playground.

Amani’s grandson waved to them and continued playing.  Shortly, they left the park. Srini picked his wheeled airline carry-on bag from his hotel room nearby. He ordered a tea and some snacks for Amani and her grandson - Kiano.  Then they all walked to Amani’s house that was about half a mile away, past many city streets. Amani seemed to know a few people in the neighbourhood. They waved to her and she waved back. There were a few strange looks at Srini accompanying her, but no questions or comments.  Kiano was a well behaved quiet boy. He was shy at first, but then opened up and started to chat with Srini, asking where he lived, about his family. Amani too occasionally asked some questions.



Copyright  (c) Kannan Narayanamurthy 2015
All rights reserved 

The Last Penny - Chapter 9 – The Itinerary – Siblings and Family in India

Anita, Rohan, Molly and the kids drove Srini to the airport.  He was first headed to India via Singapore, to visit some close family and friends. They checked in and spent some time waiting, letting the kids wander and play in the large spaces at the airport. A little while before the flight was called, Srini got up and after the farewell hugs and kisses, picked up his wheeled carry-on baggage and walked towards the door leading to the immigration and security check. He turned and waved. Suddenly he appeared a little frail to his children. He saw them and the twins waving ‘bye-bye’ and blowing kisses. They watched each other until the doors shut.

Srini spent a couple of days in Singapore with his close friend’s family. They went around their favourite and familiar sights. They went to a new restaurant and show that had come up recently. It was an enjoyable yet relaxing and slow paced tour. He had not told them of his condition when he arrived. He intended to quietly let them know as he was leaving. He asked them not to tell others ahead of his visit to see them.

Srini flew into India to see his own family in India – his own parents had passed away and he had siblings, close cousins, aged uncles and an aunt and many close friends.  There were many nephews and nieces and some had children of their own. Srini spent about six weeks visiting them all. He made it a point to spend a few days at each of his sibling’s house. They all saw him relaxed, slowed down a bit, taking his medications but seemingly otherwise fit and fine. Srini spent time listening, talking, playing with each of his nephews and nieces and their children. He seemed to quietly take in as much of them and their spirit. He did not seem to be in any hurry, no other business meetings as he used to have in the past. He played hopscotch, card games, walked them to the market nearby to buy them little treats.

He got involved in cooking. He sang and organised a party for his teenage nieces’ friends. He got up and danced, surprising everyone, when one of the teenagers joking suggested it.

“Srini-GrandUncle, are you retired now?” asked his nephew’s little son who remembered him from a previous visit when he was running all around town on important ‘business’.

“Yes, you could say that. I still work, but I have taken time off now.”

As they passed through landmarks in the cities that Srini had grown up in – big fair grounds, circus arenas, sports stadiums, parks and museums, memories came flooding back, images of how somethings remained the same while others had changed. Srini was drinking in all the sights with quiet but hungry eyes. They passed by, quickly, one last time, giving him a fleeting glimpse into his past.

“It is as if my whole life is flashing past before my eyes,” thought Srini with a smile.

Srini had let his siblings know ahead of his visit that he wanted to visit a few temples and places that they had been together with their parents, as kids. They had all planned to do a little round trip of those special places now. They travelled in a large van they had rented. No one knew Srini’s time was running out. They just felt glad he found time for this now and that they all could do this together. It was a fun, loud and boisterous long drive from the big city to the distant village. They had booked a hotel in a town near the village they were headed to. They reached in the early evening, rested and woke up fresh next morning. They all bathed, dressed appropriately and set out towards the temple.

They all walked in a group towards an old temple near a village in the south of India. It had a history involving Srini’s great-grandfather and his family. There were still some branches of his family and families of their friends living nearby. As it does in a small town, word got around that Srini, from overseas was visiting. People came up to them on the street, as they walked, introduced themselves and often showed surprising knowledge of details of Srini’s life, even overseas.  Srini realised that the gossip network was more ancient and predated Google!

People inquired after Srini’s kids and grandchildren. They invited them to their homes nearby for a little coffee or drink. The fact that they were over a dozen in the group did not faze them one bit. The temple priest had been notified in advance and he had spread the word. After visiting and having atleast a sip of water from each house, the group went over to the temple where they had a special prayer organised. A whole lot of people – Srini’s distant relations, friends and just interested on-lookers came and joined in.

Srini and his siblings were touched. As they perambulated one of the altars in the temple they paused to sit down under a tree, where they had sat down many, many years ago with their parents, when Srini was a young boy, barely a teenager.  He remembered seeing the crows and sparrows nearby then. He saw some now. Suddenly, he had a lost expression in his eyes and accidentally called out to his father,”Appa! Look at that crow, he is coming over.” He had said this very thing when he had come here as a child.

Only one young child and one of Srini’s siblings noticed this and wondered. They did not say anything out loud since they could not make sense of it. It took Srini a moment to come back to the present time. He looked the approaching crow and it seemed to look him directly in the eye.  Another crow called out from a tree branch, looking down on him, with tenderness, it seemed. Srini felt the spirit of his parents. He scattered some of the ‘Prasadam’  (treats to eat , that sacred offerings to God and are given out to anyone). The crow came over and picked up a bit and flew off.

Srini’s group moved on too. They spent a pleasant, joyful week in their old home town. They went to all the well-known temples nearby and attended famous annual festivals. There were public lectures and concerts that were a part of local tradition for many hundreds of years. Srini was lost in them, along with memories of having seen some of them when his parents were around. Everywhere he went, he spotted atleast a pair of crows around. He tried to feed them.  It was as if his parents were accompanying him around this time too. Soon, everyone observed his bond with the crows.

They all returned to the big city from where he was to depart on his onward journey via Dubai to Africa and Europe and then on to the USA. He planned to visit some more of his friends and family scattered over the world, with the exception that he wanted to visit a couple of cities he had never been to before, where he knew no one. He had planned the itinerary with a few special features in mind. A couple of days before he was to depart from India, as his siblings were all gathered around, chatting after dinner, Srini broke the news about his medical condition to them.

They were all stunned and their faces registered a devastation that he could not bear. He had been calm, composed and even appeared happy when he started to tell them. But the look on his sibling’s faces and their reactions melted the steel of his heart. Silent tears flowed down his cheeks too.

“Look, I did not want to get you all into a sad mood before. We could not have done what we did this past month, if I had told you earlier. There are still a couple of days for you to bid me a proper farewell. After all, we will meet again. Do you remember those crows that I was bonding with in our hometown? I felt they were our parents in spirit. I don’t know what the future will be beyond the boundary of this body, but if at all I can, I will be around you, maybe as a bird for some time. I would dearly love to be born again into this family. I have promised Anita that if at all it is possible, I will come back as her child or someone who will remind you of me.”

There were many hugs and long chats in the next two days. Most of his siblings could not sleep properly for the next two days. Srini realised that they did not have enough time to recover from the news and do somethings together for the last time. He called up the airlines and postponed his flight out of India by a week.

They were all relieved that they still could say things to each other and do things that were important, knowing it would be last time. The children were told the news and it took them a little while to get to grips with it. The very young ones were the most accepting and calm. There were many tears, hugs and games.

Srini’s siblings took some walks down memory lane and actually down a lane they used to walk to school a long time ago. There was sadness in the atmosphere within the family, but also some happiness and gratitude that they had this time together with Srini fit enough to do things. They realised that not all were fortunate to get this kind of time and opportunity.

A couple of his siblings decided to plan a visit to see Srini in the very last days at his home, and to be at his side until the very end.

One day, Srini and one of his siblings were talking about their past passionately and got into an argument. Hurt feelings from childhood and teenage surfaced. Everything was out in the open now, but with a loving spirit behind it. Srini asked for forgiveness and so did his siblings. Everyone noted how Srini had changed and become more open, direct and spoke without trying to sugar coat anything, but at the same time they could feel the strong love in every word, tone, gesture and expression. Life and perspective about life changed for everyone in his family. Even children seemed accept upcoming death as a natural part of life. The week passed quickly.

With much affection, hugs, kisses and wishes to see him off at the airport, Srini walked through the door toward the security and immigration check before boarding his flight to Dubai. He saw a large group of his family with their eyes on him, everyone waving, smiling and crying at the same time. He had a smile too and he waved goodbye. They kept watching until the doors closed.  His flight took off and he looked out the window down at India, his land of birth. It was teeming with life. He wanted to return as one of the creatures there if he could.



Copyright  (c) Kannan Narayanamurthy 2015
All rights reserved