The Killer Pot Hole

Bala was in a deep slumber..a wave of cold wind washed over him through the window so he pulled the sheets over his head and snuggled back to bed..2 seconds later the sheets were yanked out of his hands.. A shrill voice screamed far away.."Baala..wake up..Bala..it is getting late for school...God this boy is just so lazy !!"

Bala pried open his eyes warily..His mother stood there with a roller pin in one hand and a little bit of wheat flour smeared on her forehead.."Get up you Lazy bones..you have school today..Appa is finishing his bath..Go bathe now..I am getting your lunch box packed!!"

"But Amma..I dont have school today..it is Saturday..and Diwali..pleeeease let me sleep for 5 more mins..??" murmured Bala.

His mother rolled her eyes and looked down at him with a deep sigh..Diwali is over.."look at the toys strewn all over the floor..so disorganized"..."Suniye ji Bala utt nahi raha hai..dekhiye zara..isne School bag bhi pack nahi kiya hai..ab tak" mom called out to her husband who was now burning camphor in front of the Lord's photo in the Puja room and reciting mantras like a pious Brahmin"

Bala jumped out of bed now..His dad was a strict man and a teacher at his own school which made things worse for him..he had to be punctual and pay attention to his teachers in classes at any cost..else he would get reprimanded.."You are Sekhar Krishnan's son aren't you?? Your father is a highly intelligent and well respected tutor..You should look up to him and try to emulate him..be a grade A Student..Do you hear me..Pay attention now!!"

Unfortunately for Bala his father was M.S.C in Mathematics and a Math teacher for high school students at his school. To add insult to injury his elder sister Laxmi had topped the ICSE 10th Board examinations with a State rank of #2

Bala had big shoes to fill..a Lover of cricket he rather spend the whole day outside playing cricket or chasing a football around at the playground behind his school with his best friends Laxman and Karthik. He had little interest in being cooped up in the hot stuffy classrooms while one teacher after another came in like endless waves of the ocean and droned on and on for hours about theorems and fractions..Hydrogen Peroxide and Nitrous oxide..How our brave ancestors fought off the British and Mughals alike with fervor and Courage.

Bala quickly showered and dressed..hastily stumbled across to his bagpack and shoved in all the books he could find on the Study table..his pencil case and his cricket ball followed suit.

Bala walked into the dining hall sheepishly..he knew he was late..His father was now dressed in white shirt and black pants.. with a vibhuti on his forehead and spectacles sliding down his nose.. he looked up from his newspapers with a stern look and without a word went back to his reading. His sister laxmi was already eating her breakfast and looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Bala sat at the table in front of his plate and tried to take one idli from the serving bowl..His dad spoke his face still covered by the newspapers.."Bala did you wash your hands and finish your prayers??" His sister Laxmi smirked as Bala ran to the washroom and hastily washed his hands, wiped them with a towel and sprinted to the Puja room bent his head down for a second and ran back to the table..he barely started eating his idli when his father put down the news papers and said.."We are getting late..lets go to school..Pushpa..did you pack their lunch boxes??"

Pushpa came running to the dining table .."Do not forget to get the lunch box back from school" she said as she thrusted the lunch box into Bala's hands and another into Laxmi's.."I won't Amma..Bye" said Bala distractedly.

As Bala's father kick started his age old Vespa scooter in the driveway..laxmi started her cycle and rode out of the driveway.."Bye Appa Bye Amma..Bye Chotu".. she turned to wink at him as she cycled out the gate.

Bala stood demurely as his father started the scooter and put on his helmet ..Sekhar signaled him to get on the scooter..As Bala sat on the scooter.. he held on to his bag tightly and drifted away.. To the lush green fields of Naalangal Patti village, Tamil Nadu. Where he woke up with the Sun..jumped out of bed ..chased the hens out of the coop and fed them grains..fed grass to the cows in the cow shed and watched with amazement as the workers milked the cows and brushed their hide..his grandmother lovingly brushing his hair and handing him a tall glass of fresh milk...Climbing thick mango trees and chasing butterflies..jumping into the cool streams and trying to catch an unsuspecting frog or ride in the tractor with his uncle and steal bites of roti from his Grandfather's plate. The endless hours of kabaddi and cricket with his village pals till his uncle dragged him home by the ear and his grandmother oiling his hair and feeding him rice balls made  of cow ghee and pepper..and falling asleep on her lap listening to stories of great leaders like Gandhi, Nehru and Subhash Chandra Bose and verses from Thiruvalluvar as his Grandfather recited with utmost patriotism and pride making him laugh out aloud and his eyes moist with tears.

"Bala??"...Bala was jerked out of his reverie.."Bala..did you start your preparation for your 7th Board exams?? Do not wait till the last minute like you usually do..make a study plan and start studying now. I will quiz you everyday after dinner!!"... "Yes App.." the words were barely out of his mouth when the scooter shook violently and Bala felt himself tossed up in the air falling head-on to the cemented street and watched helplessly as his bag flew from his hand..he expected his head to touch the hard ground any moment...but all he felt was hitting a puddle of water with a  "SPLASH" and falling deep down into a tunnel..deeper and deeper..swirling like a whirlpool..he let out a scream but no sound came out..he closed his eyes expecting the worst!!!

The sun rays danced on his face as he opened his eyes.. he was in a meadow with tall grass as far as the eyes could see surrounded by wild flowers of exotic colors..a beautiful rainbow adorned the bright blue sky and as he squinted his eyes and surveyed his surroundings bewildered as to how he got here..he heard distant laughter..

As he turned around he could see stalls like a farmer's market down a winding path made of gravel and stone with tall grass on either side and crickets chirping..he walked down the path unsure towards the market below.. slowly picking up the pace then ran as fast as his legs could carry..When he reached the end of the pathway he stopped and looked around amazed with his eyes wide open and as he scanned his surroundings...children of all ages.. girls and boys were happily walking around dressed in bright clothes..eating cotton candy and chocolates..laughing and playing..they were all walking towards an Amusement park with sparkling lights and  rides like the  Giant wheel, Merry go around, Roller coaster, Puppet show, Corn maze and a hall of mirrors. Clowns in costumes juggled and tickled themselves like monkeys making the children laugh...where as beautiful ballerinas danced around twirling pink satin ribbons at the tips of their fingers..smiling and bowing every time a child stood to admire them in awe and wonder.

The stalls had colorful Fruit Jellies, Cheese Pop Corn, varieties of Cupcakes, delicious Candies with gooey nutty filling and Caramel Apples..the kids were handed out life size teddy bears and giraffe soft toys for shooting the balloons or getting the ring across the traffic like cones..Bala got a cotton candy for himself and headed towards the Jumbo Circus and sat down in the dark. He did not know what to expect his skin was tingling with excitement..when a bunch of clowns came on to the stage in a small red car honking loudly, jumped out and started making balloon animals and pulled out endless knotted handkerchiefs from their pockets while brightly painted Elephants paraded and trumpeted loudly till his ears hurt..the Circus performers then jumped on to the Trampoline and into a tub of water with a splash making the kids giggle...Acrobats swinged across the Trapeze with ease and Bala clapped in delight as  the world's fattest twins ball danced with conjoined Siamese twins round and round till they fell down dizzy..bears in helmets rode motorcycles and chimpanzees walked the line with sticks in their hands...Bala couldn't believe what he was watching but he did not want it to end..he sat there in utter Amazement..

He decided to be a tad bit brave so he went on out and got onto the Roller Coaster and as it slowly started moving he closed his eyes and held onto the railing tightly..whoosh...children screamed and off he went into a frenzy up the tracks..stopped for a moment to catch his breath and plummeted down..down and down..Bala screamed but never opened his eyes for fear of losing balance and falling down..crashing into the ground...as he was shook awake he slowly opened his eyes..his mother stood looking down at him teary eyed.." Bala??..he is awake...Doctor he is awake..Thank God..Sekhar Sekhar..Bala is awake".. Sekhar and laxmi ran up to his bed and looked down at him with utmost concern.. "Appa lost balance at a pothole Bala..You fell from the scooter and hurt your head pretty badly..We were all so worried...We thought we had lost you...welcome back Chotu...never scare us like that.. ever again" choked laxmi..and as Bala closed his eyes ever so slowly ...desperately wanting to be back at the Amusement park...he wished the rides would never stop...the music would not fade and the laughter would not end.