A Bend in the River of Life

A Bend in the River of Life by Budh Aditya Roy Read Free Book Online Page A

Book: A Bend in the River of Life by Budh Aditya Roy Read Free Book Online
Authors: Budh Aditya Roy
Rampur would remain in his love forever. He went to the river to calm down his mind. Poor Rana! One day he would realize that the object which is the source of joy in one circumstance also becomes the source of pain under different circumstances.
    He gave the river a long hard look and said to himself that during his three-year stay in Rampur he did not seem to notice any change in the river and the activities around it. The river was still murmuring its way to the ocean. Ferry boats were still carrying the passengers across. Barges and steamers were still cruising along in a business like manner carrying loads of supplies and passengers to their destinations. Devotees were still standing in the waist deep water performing ablutions and offering prayers to the Almighty. Yet in these three years there had been so many changes in his life. Saroj and Kanika passed away. Devika was given in marriage and never again would his relationship with her be the same as before. He himself came back from the jaws of death. In a few weeks Rampur would remain only in his memory as did Nawabpur and Dacca. Many such thoughts kept coming to his mind. He was intrigued why there were so many changes in his life when everything else appeared to remain the same. It was a pity that at that point in time the child’s mind in Rana was incapable of capturing the essence of life. Change is the only constant in life. Stagnation is death. For change connotes vitality. Without change life loses its dynamics. It loses its creativity. Without change life is bound up in lethargy and torpor and eventually stumbles and dies an unceremonious death. Yet change is frowned with apprehension. To some, change is even frightening. But the plain truth is if the world does not want to flow with change, it will be left behind by change in a hurry.
    In the afternoon of the second Sunday in January the Roy family matriarch Rajani moved their abode to Lakeview Boulevard in Garden Lakes. Rana left behind another stop in the journey of his tortuous life. The new house overlooked a two mile-long man made lake with a stadium and water sport facilities. For Rana it was a different experience altogether. Garden Lakes did not have the old aura of Rampur, with its palaces and a breathtaking view of the river. However, it was a relatively new development, better planned with broader roads and modern amenities. The river was far away from Garden Lakes. But the lake was big enough with green surroundings to offer a frazzled mind the serenity of its placid waters.
    However, in one area Garden Lakes had clear cut superiority over Rampur and that was education. The worries that Rajani and Amit had in the matter of Rana’s education, subsided with the move to Garden Lakes. There were many schools to choose from. However, the one that was chosen for Rana was a missionary school, one of the finest in academic accomplishments. Rana soon accepted the loss of friendly and regal Rampur and embraced the elegance and comfort of Garden Lakes. He exchanged the ever flowing river with the ever serene lake. He began learning from his short experience that life was a constant trade-off. One has to forgo something to gain something else. One bank of the river is washed away to create another one down the way. Thus the River of Life flows on, always deceptively rapidly. Years come and years pass by often imperceptibly. Time and tide wait for no body. In a few weeks, the Roy family would complete a year in the new residence almost unnoticed. In the scheme of creation, many more years would come and leave them behind without their discerning the passage of time. For time is an integral part of the River of Life and there was nothing to prevent them from flowing together to their endless destiny, the ever receding Eternity.
    Christmas season was upon the earth once again. This would be their first Christmas in the new house. Rana’s ninth birthday was also round the corner. Amit came to the town

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